Verse structure: 5 words, 25 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֔ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 1188 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֔ה, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·to·Aaron" (וְאֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֖ן, 7 letters). 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "saying" (root אמר, 79x in Leviticus); "and·spoke" (root דבר, 76x in Leviticus). Full calculation: וַיְדַבֵּ֣ר [and·spoke] (222) + יְהֹוָ֔ה [Hashem] (26) + אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה [to·Moses] (376) + וְאֶֽל־אַהֲרֹ֖ן [and·to·Aaron] (293) + לֵאמֹֽר [saying] (271) = 1188.
Onkelos
And Hashem spoke with Moses and with Aaron, saying:
Ibn Ezra
"And Hashem spoke to Moses and to Aaron" — because the priests must distinguish between a zavah and a niddah, as our Sages of blessed memory taught regarding the distinction between types of blood. The Torah now begins to explain impurities arising from a hidden matter, whereas tzara'at was a visible affliction.
Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When any man has an issue out of his flesh, his issue is unclean.
verse value 2931
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 53 letters. The shortest word is "when" (כִּ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·say" (וַאֲמַרְתֶּ֖ם, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 311: man, man. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·you·shall·say" (וַאֲמַרְתֶּ֖ם), "from·his·flesh" (מִבְּשָׂר֔וֹ), "his·discharge" (זוֹב֖וֹ). The root איש appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "he·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "to·sons·of" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus); "impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root זוב ("one·with·discharge") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·them', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 9 words. Full calculation: דַּבְּרוּ֙ [speak] (212) + אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י [to·sons·of] (93) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (541) + וַאֲמַרְתֶּ֖ם [and·you·shall·say] (687) + אֲלֵהֶ֑ם [to·them] (76) + אִ֣ישׁ [man] (311) + אִ֗ישׁ [man] (311) + כִּ֤י [when] (30) + יִהְיֶה֙ [he·shall·be] (30) + זָ֣ב [one·with·discharge] (9) + מִבְּשָׂר֔וֹ [from·his·flesh] (548) + זוֹב֖וֹ [his·discharge] (21) + טָמֵ֥א [impure] (50) + הֽוּא [he] (12) = 2931.
Onkelos
Speak with the children of Israel and say to them: Any man who has a discharge from his flesh — his discharge is impure.
Rashi
כי יהיה זב WHEN THERE BE A RUNNING ISSUE — One might think if there be a running issue from any portion of his body (e. g., ear, nose) he shall be unclean! Therefore it states מבשרו “from his flesh" (i.e. from some part of his flesh) and not from all parts of his flesh (the prefix מ is a partitive מ). Now, however, that Scripture has made a difference between one part of his flesh and another part of his flesh, I have the right to draw a conclusion: it (the Torah) pronounces uncleanness in a case of a man with a running issue (זב) and it pronounces uncleanness in a particular case of a woman with a running issue (זבה). How is it in the case of a זבה? Through that place in her body where she becomes unclean with a lighter uncleanness, viz., that of a נדה, she also becomes unclean with a more stringent uncleanness i.e. through זיבה, a continuance of the issue beyond the usual period! Similarly the זב: through the place where he becomes unclean with a lighter uncleanness, viz., קרי, (an involuntary emission of semen which makes him unclean only until evening; cf. v. 16), he also becomes unclean through a more stringent uncleanness, viz., זיבה (when he is unclean seven days and must bring a sacrifice; cf. vv. 13 ff. with 16 ff.; from the latter it is evident which part of the body is in question; it follows logically that the same part is here intended) (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Section 1 5). טמא זובו HIS ISSUE IS UNCLEAN — This teaches regarding a drop (i.e. the semen itself) that it communicates uncleanness (and it is not only the man that has the issue who is unclean) (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Section 1 8-9; Niddah 55a). The זב issue referred to here is similar to water of dough (that runs out of dough) made of barley and it is dissolved (fluid) being similar to the white of an addled egg (where the white and the yolk have run together); שכבת זרע, however, is viscid and looks like the white of an egg that has not become addled (Niddah 35b).
Ibn Ezra
"Zav" — like "flowing with milk" (zavat chalav), in the manner of drops dripping. "From his flesh" — a euphemism for the male organ. "His discharge" (zuvo) — a noun.
Sforno
זב מבשרו, the Talmud K’ritut 8 already explained the preposition מ in the word מבשרו as meaning “emanating from,” and not as “due to, on account of.” The word בשר refers to the male organ. In other words, unless the symptoms described here are due to a local physiological imbalance and not as a secondary effect of some other primary cause such as overeating, for instance, these symptoms will not result in and confer ritual impurity. Our sages in Niddah 35 already explained that the symptom called זוב is very similar in appearance to the albumen in an egg which has become rotten. When the cause is directly connected to the male organs of the afflicted person the legislation under discussion in this chapter applies. This is the meaning of the word מבשרו, a disturbance in the male organ to function properly. The author speculates that the cause may be overly frequent indulgence in the sex act, which in turns leads to insufficient time for the seminal fluid being replaced properly, etc. If that were the cause, a cause brought about by fantasizing about the sex act too often, the remedy, in part, would be the seven days during which the afflicted person counts towards his being healed, reflecting on the part his lifestyle played in causing the symptoms from which he suffered. By indulging in fewer sexual fantasies and the need to offer a sin offering after being free from these symptoms the afflicted person my be on the way to spiritual rehabilitation also. These thoughts are reflected in the Talmud on the folios we referred to.
Or HaChaim
דברו אל בני ישראל ואמרתם, "speak to the children of Israel and say to them, etc." This entire verse appears redundant in view of verse 1 before it. Perhaps we may understand it in light of Torat Kohanim which explained that whereas the Israelites confer ritual impurity when they suffer from the involuntary seminal emissions called זיבה, the Gentiles do not confer such ritual impurity if they come into contact with Jews or touch their belongings, etc. The Torah therefore employed the expression דברו to indicate the relative severity of this legislation. Expressions such as דבר always indicate some degree of harshness when compared to the expression אמור. A Jew suffering from this disease transmits ritual impurity to anything he sits on or lies on, even. The Torah continued with the softer ואמרתם to console the Israelites that the fact that they transmit ritual impurity is a compliment for them as it shows that prior to that disease they were in a state of ritual purity, a status never enjoyed by Gentiles. The word אמר is used as indicating spiritual superiority in Deut. 26,17 where G'd described the mutual bond between G'd and Israel in those terms. The considerations we have just outlined form the mystical dimension of the statement in Shabbat 13 that a שוטה, a person of unsound mind, does not suffer afflictions. The meaning is that he does not realise that he is discriminated against by suffering what others do not suffer. איש איש כי יהיה זב, any man that has an issue, etc. Why did the Torah repeat the word איש? Perhaps the Torah wanted to inform us of something we learned in Tanna de bey Eliyahu chapter 15 that if a man experiences a seminal emission he is obligated to immerse himself in a ritual bath. Such a person may reason that inasmuch as no outsider is aware of this emission, he need not bother to go to a ritual bath. He will use the same kind of reasoning when it occurs a second time. If he experiences such an emission a third time without having purified himself in the interval, he would become guilty of what is written in Job 33,29 פעמים שלוש עם גבר, "twice or three times with a man;" i.e. that G'd lets man get away with his inadequacies twice or three times before disciplining him severely. Ignoring the need for ritual immersion will eventually result in such a man becoming a זב, afflicted with the flux which forms the subject matter of our paragraph. The word ,איש איש alludes to the person who ignores the need to purify himself repeatedly. We find the word איש used in Deut. 23,11 where the Torah speaks of a man experiencing nocturnal seminal emissions and becoming ritually impure as a result. The Torah hints that such a person cannot expect to get away with his failure to purify himself more than twice. זוכו טמא הוא, in his issue, he is impure. Our sages in Torat Kohanim understand the last three words of the verse, i.e. זובו טמא הוא as belonging together. The verse tells us that the flux he emitted is ritually impure. You may ask...
Chizkuni
אל בני ישראל, “to the Children of Israel;” the addition of these words is a reminder that the conditions described forthwith apply only to Israelites. Gentiles, even if they display these symptoms cannot confer ritual impurity on Israelites by means of them.איש, an adult male, not a minor; [if that word had not been repeated. Ed.] איש, the repetition of the word converts this line into something more inclusive, hence the halachah rules that minors are also included. מבשרו “from his flesh;” this restrictive clause teaches that as long as this issue is still in contact with its origin, i.e. connected to the person from which it came forth, it does not confer ritual impurity on those who come into contact with it. (Sifra) The word בשרו is a simile for the private parts of the person from which the issue emanates. We find this word used in the same sense also in Leviticus 16,4: ומכנסי בד יהיו על בשרו, he shall wear linen trousers on his flesh (to cover his private parts). Another example of the word בשר referring to private parts is found in verse 19 of our chapter: זובה בבשרה, “an emission from her flesh,” i.e. vagina
Rabbeinu Bahya
איש איש כי יהיה זב מבשרו זובו טמא הוא, “any man who will have a discharge from his flesh, his discharge is contaminated.” Rashi comments that the last two words, זובו טמא, refer to the drop of the discharge which confers impurity on the person whom it touches. The appearance of the discharge described here is similar to the colour of water from a dough made from barley flour; it is also similar in appearance to the white of an egg turned bad, i.e. mixed with the yolk. This is different from sperm which looks like the white of an egg which retained its consistency. The Torah adds the words (verse 3) רר בשרו את זובו, “running with the discharge from his flesh;” to tell us that the discharge resembles the saliva which comes out of the mouth as a clear fluid. When the verse continues with או החתים בשרו מזובו, this describes a thicker opaque fluid which has a tendency to block the exit from the urinal canal. The reason that the man afflicted with this disease has to bring only two birds as an offering after he has completed the purification rites is that seeing he had been smitten with a severe and infectious disease from which he has been healed by the grace of G’d, he has to offer the thanksgiving offerings anyone who has recovered from a serious disease is commanded to offer. The Torah does not belabor that point at this stage. The sin-offering legislated here is so that G’d will grant atonement for any sin which had caused the disease in the first place. The burnt-offering is an expression of gratitude for having been healed from the discharge.
Tur HaArokh
איש איש כי יהיה זב מבשרו, “any man who will have a discharge from his flesh, etc.” Nachmanides writes that the reason why a discharge from the male genitals is ritually impure and he needs to bring an offering when he has recovered, is that it is one of the most infectious diseases and he needs to bring a thanksgiving offering for having recovered from this disease at all. The sin offering, by means of which he acknowledges that had he not been guilty of a sin he would not have been afflicted with this disease, is meant to assure him that he will not become the victim of further diseases. The reason that male sperm is altogether something that is ritually impure and confers ritual impurity on contact etc., although it is a basic and natural activity, is rooted in the very nature of the act of sexual intercourse as the means by which man assure himself of progeny. It is analogous to the ritual impurity caused by and conferred by the dead. The very essence of a human being’s body is the source of its corruption. He who does lie with a woman and impregnates her, has no way of knowing whether he has destroyed his sperm in the process, or whether it will take root in the partner’s ovum and produce a new life. The Torah imposed a lesser degree of ritual impurity on a woman that has been afflicted with a similar discharge from her womb at regular intervals when she menstruates, proof that her most recent opportunity to be inseminated had failed to achieve its purpose, seeing that with her such symptoms are part of her natural life cycle, at any rate. She does not have to bring a sacrifice expressing her gratitude for having been healed, as the phenomena she experienced were not in the nature of a disease. The Torah therefore imposes on her a period of ritual impurity for seven days, regardless of her flow of blood (or discharge) having ceased earlier than that. Normally, such a flow of menstrual blood does not continue for more than seven days. However, if her discharge continues beyond the seven days that she normally discharges menstrual blood, she is clearly experiencing a disease, and upon being cured has to offer a sacrifice acknowledging that G’d had healed her, similar to the male zav having to bring such a sacrifice. In the case of the female suffering the disease described as zav or zavah, the Torah does not spell out the need for ritual immersion by the afflicted woman, as the comparisons drawn by the Torah between the male suffering this disease and the female suffering it make it plain that their processes of purification are similar, except that the male must bathe in spring water whereas the woman need only immerse herself in a ritual bath, a mikveh, water in contact with rainwater or other water that has not had a chance to become ritually contaminated. According to the plain meaning of the text the woman would have to bathe herself in spring water just as the male suffering from that disease, however our sages ruled that she need not bathe in spring water. They derived the reason for their ruling from the extraneous words ואחר תטהר, “and afterwards she becomes ritually pure” (verse 28) There was really no need to add these words as a woman is included in the legislation and the verse only wanted to make a distinction in the mechanics of her purification rites and those of the male. The discharge of a woman called זבה, consist of blood, whereas the discharge of her male counterpart consist of a whitish fluid similar to the colour of semen. In the case of a woman the time of the month when such unexpected discharge occurs is of the essence in determining whether this discharge is part of her menstrual cycle. The word ואחר means that although her purification rites did not involve spring water nonetheless she becomes purified by immersing herself in the same kind of water that purifies her at the end of her monthly menstruation.תטהר.
Rashbam
זב מבשרו, our sages understand this as looking like a mixture of seminal fluid and a discharge which is the result of that organ being diseased.
And this shall be his uncleanness in his issue: whether his flesh run with his issue, or his flesh be stopped from his issue, it is his uncleanness.
verse value 4150
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 54 letters. Verse gematria: 4150 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "runs" (רָ֣ר, 2 letters) and the longest is "or·is·stopped·up" (אֽוֹ־הֶחְתִּ֤ים, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 508: his·flesh, his·flesh. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "in·his·discharge" (בְּזוֹב֑וֹ), "runs" (רָ֣ר), "or·is·stopped·up" (אֽוֹ־הֶחְתִּ֤ים). The root זוב appears 3 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "it" (root היא, 60x in Leviticus); "his·flesh" (root בשר, 56x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·his·discharge', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 8 words. Full calculation: וְזֹ֛את [and·this] (414) + תִּהְיֶ֥ה [it·shall·be] (420) + טֻמְאָת֖וֹ [his·impurity] (456) + בְּזוֹב֑וֹ [in·his·discharge] (23) + רָ֣ר [runs] (400) + בְּשָׂר֞וֹ [his·flesh] (508) + אֶת־זוֹב֗וֹ [his·discharge] (422) + אֽוֹ־הֶחְתִּ֤ים [or·is·stopped·up] (470) + בְּשָׂרוֹ֙ [his·flesh] (508) + מִזּוֹב֔וֹ [from·his·discharge] (61) + טֻמְאָת֖וֹ [his·impurity] (456) + הִֽוא [it] (12) = 4150.
Onkelos
And this shall be his impurity in his discharge: whether his flesh runs with his discharge, or his flesh is stopped up from his discharge — this is his impurity.
Rashi
רר [WHETHER HIS FLESH] DRIP — This word is connected with ריר "spittle" — the meaning is that his flesh runs with its issue as spittle, i. e. that it (the flow) comes forth clear in appearance (not thick and troubled). או החתים OR [HIS FLESH] BE STOPPED — it means, that the flow issues thick and closes up the orifice of the membrum, so that his flesh is stopped up by the drop that issued from him. This is its literal meaning. The Halachic explanation is: The first verse (v. 2) enumerates two appearances of the issue and then terms him (the man affected by them) unclean, for it is said, "when there flows from his flesh a flowing he is unclean" and the other verse (v. 3) enumerates three appearances of the issue and only then terms him unclean, as it is said, "his uncleanness through his flow: if his flesh drips through its flow as with spittle, or if his flesh is stopped up through his flowing then only is it his uncleanness!" How can this be reconciled? Two appearances of the flow serve to make him unclean, and the third obligates him also to bring an offering (Niddah 43b; Megillah 8a).
Ibn Ezra
"And this shall be his impurity" — the meaning is that the discharge takes one of two forms. "His flesh runs" (rar besaro) — from the root of "his spittle ran down his beard" (ve-yored riro al zekano). "Or has become sealed" (o he-chtim) — like "sealed up" (ki chatom hu), meaning that the discharge has congealed and clotted and the seminal emission did not come forth when he lay with a woman.
Or HaChaim
טומאתו בזובו, his impurity in his issue, etc. According to Torat Kohanim the sequence of these words mean that only the whitish coloured discharge transmits impurity as distinct from a reddish, blood-coloured discharge. The meaning is that but for the restrictive letter ב in the word בזובו, a discharge of blood would have been considered as conferring impurity even if the Torah had written the word זובו טמא הוא as it did in verse 2, we would have had to rule that a discharge of blood is also conferring ritual impurity. In other words, the restrictive expression we discussed at length in verse 2 would not have sufficed. The reason would have been that the expression זובו was used by the Torah in both verses. We would have been forced to conclude that the restrictive nature of the word זובו referred only to the afflicted person himself and not to his discharge. I would then have learned the קל וחומר from the הלכה that his spittle confers impurity as we explained on verse 2. Alternatively, we would have reasoned that the reason we have to exclude it is only because there was a special letter needed (the letter ו in the word וזאת) to include urine otherwise we would have excluded it. טומאתו היא. it is his impurity. In Torat Kohanim the sages explain the logic as follows: If a זב, a male afflicted with this discharge who does not transmit impurity through a discharge of blood, nonetheless transmits impurity when discharging a whitish fluid, a זבה, female equivalent, who transmits impurity when discharging blood (from that orifice), most certainly would also transmit impurity if she discharges a whitish fluid. Therefore the Torah had to write טומאתו היא, it is his impurity, seeing the word טומאתו was quite unnecessary unless it was meant to tell us that a female when in the throes of this disease does not confer impurity by the discharge of a whitish fluid but only by discharging blood. This exclusion is based on the pronoun-ending טומאת־ו as opposed to the pronoun-ending טומאת־ה. We disagree with the author of Korban Aharon who uses the word היא as the basis for this exclusion. When you will examine the exclusion to be derived from the word היא more carefully you will be forced to admit that the word describes the impurity and not the person who has become impure. I have already discussed at length the fact that the קל וחומר that Torat Kohanim presents here as a possible reason why the text had to specifically teach us an exclusion is the exact opposite of the קל וחומר the author of Torat Kohanim suggested as a possible reason for the inclusion of the urine in the fluids causing impurity. I have told you that such hypothetical logical approaches are not necessarily final and may be abandoned when new tools of exegsis come to light. Another example had been Torat Kohanim on Leviticus 14,7. We can answer these apparent contradictions by pointing out -as did the Talmud in Niddah 54- that there are elements in the laws about the blood of a menstruating...
Chizkuni
רר בשרו את זובו, “his flesh ran with his issue;” the word את here is to be understood as מן, i.e. “from;” we have an example of this use of the word את when Moses tells Pharaoh he is going too pray for the plague to stop when he leaves the boundaries of the city, i.e. כצאתי את העיר (Exodus 9,29)
Rashbam
רר בשרו את זובו, the word is similar to the expression ויורד רירו על זקנו “his spittle ran down his beard” in Samuel I 21,14 when David pretended to be mentally disturbed in order to save his life. The flesh of the person afflicted drips with this discharge. או החתים, or that at the same time the discharge is sticky, congeals and adheres to part of the flesh of the afflicted person.
Every bed on which he who has the issue lies shall be unclean; and every thing on which he sits shall be unclean.
verse value 2550
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 46 letters. Verse gematria: 2550 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֨ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "any·bedding" (כׇּל־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֗ב, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 116: upon·it, upon·it. The root על appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "upon·it" (root על, 127x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root משכב ("any·bedding") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'it·shall·be·impure', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: כׇּל־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֗ב [any·bedding] (417) + אֲשֶׁ֨ר [which] (501) + יִשְׁכַּ֥ב [he·shall·lie] (332) + עָלָ֛יו [upon·it] (116) + הַזָּ֖ב [the·one·with·discharge] (14) + יִטְמָ֑א [it·shall·be·impure] (60) + וְכׇֽל־הַכְּלִ֛י [and·all·the·object] (121) + אֲשֶׁר־יֵשֵׁ֥ב [which·he·shall·sit] (813) + עָלָ֖יו [upon·it] (116) + יִטְמָֽא [it·shall·be·impure] (60) = 2550.
Onkelos
Every bed upon which the one with the discharge lies shall be impure, and every vessel upon which he sits shall be impure.
Rashi
כל המשכב EVERY PLACE OF REPOSE — This means: everything that is fitted for sleeping on (thus excluding a door or plank etc.). One might, however, think that it includes anything intended for some other action also, as long as it can be used for sleeping and he actually slept upon it! It, however, states אשר ישכב — it does not state אשר שכב, “upon which one has slept" but אשר ישכב, “upon which one sleeps usually" — i.e. that which is intended to be used for this always, thus excluding that of which people can say to him, “Get up and let us to our work [with that upon which you are lying]" (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 1 1-3). אשר ישב [EVERYTHING] WHEREON HE SITTETH — It is not said here יָשַׁב אשר, "on which he has sat", but אשר יֵשֵׁב, “on which one sits usually" — it speaks therefore of something that is intended to be used for this always (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 1 3; Shabbat 59a).
Ibn Ezra
The same rule applies to the bed and to the seat, and likewise whoever touches either of them is subject to the same law.
Rashbam
אשר ישכב עליו, even if the (healthy) person lies under a stone not touching the bedstead of the afflicted person at all. The zav’s ritual impurity is still conferred upon him. The common denominator of the wide-ranging ability to confer impurity of zav, zavah, and niddah, the menstruating woman, are that they confer their own severe degree of ritual impurity to anything which lies underneath them even though not in physical contact with them. The only exception to this rule is if said afflicted party sits or lies on something that does not normally serve as a place to sit on or to lie on.
And whoever touches his bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 2191
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 43 letters. The shortest word is "who" (אֲשֶׁ֥ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "his·bedding" (בְּמִשְׁכָּב֑וֹ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 92: he·shall·wash, in·the·waters. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "his·bedding" (בְּמִשְׁכָּב֑וֹ). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "who" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "and·he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "and·man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·bedding', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְאִ֕ישׁ [and·man] (317) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [who] (501) + יִגַּ֖ע [he·shall·touch] (83) + בְּמִשְׁכָּב֑וֹ [his·bedding] (370) + יְכַבֵּ֧ס [he·shall·wash] (92) + בְּגָדָ֛יו [his·clothes] (25) + וְרָחַ֥ץ [and·he·shall·wash] (304) + בַּמַּ֖יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·he·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 2191.
Onkelos
And a man who touches his bed shall launder his garments and bathe in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Rashi
ואיש אשר יגע במשכבו AND WHOSOEVER TOUCHES HIS PLACE OF REPOSE [SHALL WASH HIS GARMENTS … AND BE UNCLEAN UNTIL THE EVENING] — This tells us regarding the object on which he lies down that it is more stringent than an object touched by him in any manner other than lying on it — for this (the former) becomes a primary source of uncleanness (אב הטומאה) communicating uncleanness to any man who touches it, he in turn making unclean the garments he happens to wear at that moment, while anything touched by him that is not his bed becomes only a secondary source of uncleanness of the first degree (ולד הטומאה) communicating uncleanness only to food and drink (but not to men or garments) (cf. Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Section 2 1).
Chizkuni
ואיש אשר יגע, “and a man who touches;” he contaminates his clothing at the time he touches his bed, his clothing will become contaminated. When he separates from the bed, seeing that his status of ritual contamination is relatively mild, i.e. ראשון לטומאה, one step removed from the impurity’s origin, his clothing had not become contaminated also. במשכבו, “his bed;” according to Rashi we learn from this that the ritual impurity of his bed is more severe than if he had touched the source of the impurity, the emission itself. If someone had touched him, he would become impure only in the second degree, requiring only to wait for sunset in order to regain his purity. Sitting on the bed of the person who had had this involuntary emission of semen is worse than his body touching the source of the emission. A person who touched only the body of the person having suffered this emission, only needs to immerse his clothing in a ritual bath, in order to regain his ritual purity. (Compare verse 8)
And he who sits on any thing on which he who has the issue sat shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 2351
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 51 letters. The shortest word is "the·one·with·discharge" (הַזָּ֑ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "upon·the·object" (עַֽל־הַכְּלִ֔י, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 92: he·shall·wash, in·the·waters. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·whoever·sits" (וְהַיֹּשֵׁב֙). The root ישב appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "upon·it" (root על, 127x in Leviticus); "his·clothes" (root בגד, 52x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·one·with·discharge', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְהַיֹּשֵׁב֙ [and·whoever·sits] (323) + עַֽל־הַכְּלִ֔י [upon·the·object] (165) + אֲשֶׁר־יֵשֵׁ֥ב [which·he·shall·sit] (813) + עָלָ֖יו [upon·it] (116) + הַזָּ֑ב [the·one·with·discharge] (14) + יְכַבֵּ֧ס [he·shall·wash] (92) + בְּגָדָ֛יו [his·clothes] (25) + וְרָחַ֥ץ [and·he·shall·wash] (304) + בַּמַּ֖יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·he·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 2351.
Onkelos
And one who sits upon the vessel upon which the one with the discharge sat shall launder his garments and bathe in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Rashi
והישב על הכלי AND HE THAT SITTETH ON ANY THING [WHEREON HE SAT THAT HATH AN ISSUE … SHALL BE UNCLEAN] — even though he (the person) is not actually in contact with it: even if there be ten things one upon the other, the lowest being that upon which a זב has once sat, they all communicate uncleanness according to the law applicable to a seat upon which an unclean person has sat, and similarly is the case with an object upon which he has lain (cf. Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 3 1).
And if he who has the issue spits upon him who is clean, then he shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 1498
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 41 letters. The shortest word is "the·one·with·discharge" (הַזָּ֖ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·if·he·shall·spit" (וְכִֽי־יָרֹ֥ק, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·if·he·shall·spit" (וְכִֽי־יָרֹ֥ק), "in·the·pure" (בַּטָּה֑וֹר). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "his·clothes" (root בגד, 52x in Leviticus); "until·the·evening" (root ערב, 44x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·pure', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְכִֽי־יָרֹ֥ק [and·if·he·shall·spit] (346) + הַזָּ֖ב [the·one·with·discharge] (14) + בַּטָּה֑וֹר [in·the·pure] (222) + וְכִבֶּ֧ס [and·he·shall·wash] (88) + בְּגָדָ֛יו [his·clothes] (25) + וְרָחַ֥ץ [and·he·shall·wash] (304) + בַּמַּ֖יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·he·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 1498.
Onkelos
And if the one with the discharge spits upon one who is pure, he shall launder his garments and bathe in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Rashi
וכי ירק הזב בטהור AND IF HE THAT HATH THE ISSUE SPIT UPON ONE WHO IS CLEAN — and he (the clean person) comes in contact with it (the spittle; i. e. it actually falls upon him) or even if he only bears it (i. e. it has, for instance, fallen upon a stick which he is carrying) then HE SHALL BE UNCLEAN UNTIL THE EVEN, for the spittle communicates uncleanness through carrying it (cf. Niddah 55b).
Ibn Ezra
"Spits" (yarok) — a well-known verb of the doubled-root class; the proof is the dagesh in the kuf [of rokhi]. Even his spittle causes impurity, since the discharge comes from clinging ailments. It is not a person's habit to spit in his fellow's face intentionally; rather it occurs unintentionally, as the zav spat and it fell upon the clean person.
And whatever saddle he who has the issue rides upon shall be unclean.
verse value 1246
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 26 letters. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֨ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·any·means·for·riding" (וְכׇל־הַמֶּרְכָּ֗ב, 8 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·any·means·for·riding" (וְכׇל־הַמֶּרְכָּ֗ב), "he·shall·ride" (יִרְכַּ֥ב). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "upon·it" (root על, 127x in Leviticus). Full calculation: וְכׇל־הַמֶּרְכָּ֗ב [and·any·means·for·riding] (323) + אֲשֶׁ֨ר [that] (501) + יִרְכַּ֥ב [he·shall·ride] (232) + עָלָ֛יו [upon·it] (116) + הַזָּ֖ב [the·one·with·discharge] (14) + יִטְמָֽא [it·shall·be·impure] (60) = 1246.
Onkelos
And every saddle upon which the one with the discharge rides shall be impure.
Rashi
וכל המרכב AND ANYTHING FOR RIDING — even though he has not sat upon it when riding, e. g. the hold in front of the saddle, which is called arcon in old French, becomes unclean as a part of something for riding on (משום מרכב), and the אוכף, saddle, which is called alves in old French, is unclean as being something to sit upon (משום מושב) (Eruvin 27a).
Ibn Ezra
"And every saddle" (kol ha-merkav) — that which is capable of receiving impurity, according to the words of the transmitters [of tradition].
And whoever touches any thing that was under him shall be unclean until the even; and he who bears those things shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 3737
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 69 letters. The shortest word is "in·all" (בְּכֹל֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·all·who·touches" (וְכׇל־הַנֹּגֵ֗עַ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 351: until·the·evening, until·the·evening. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·who·lifts" (וְהַנּוֹשֵׂ֣א). The root טמא appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'until·the·evening', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 8 words.
Onkelos
And whoever touches anything that was beneath him shall be impure until evening; and whoever carries those things shall launder his garments and bathe in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Rashi
וכל הנגע בכל אשר יהיה תחתיו AND WHOSOEVER TOUCHETH ANYTHING THAT WAS תחתיו — under the זב. This intends to teach regarding such an object for riding upon (if a זב has ridden on it) that whoever touches it becomes unclean, but he does not require washing of clothes and this is something stricter in the case of a thing for sleeping on than in that of a thing for riding on (since the former necessitates that his garments should be washed; cf. v. 5). והנושא אותם AND HE THAT BEARETH THEM — “them” means all that have been mentioned in the matter of a זב — his flow, his spittle, his semen, and his urine, and that upon which he has slept or ridden — the bearing of them makes a man unclean so that he in turn makes his garments unclean (cf. Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 4 4).
Ibn Ezra
"Whatever is beneath it" — whatever is beneath the saddle conveys a lesser degree of impurity, while one who carries these objects incurs a greater degree of impurity.
And whomever he who has the issue touches, without having rinsed his hands in water, he shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 2126 — וְיָדָ֖יו = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 55 letters. Notable word values: "and·his·hands" (וְיָדָ֖יו) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "and·all" (וְכֹ֨ל, 3 letters) and the longest is "until·the·evening" (עַד־הָעָֽרֶב, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 92: in·the·waters, in·the·waters. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "he·touches·him" (יִגַּע־בּוֹ֙), "and·his·hands" (וְיָדָ֖יו), "did·not·rinse" (לֹא־שָׁטַ֣ף). The root מים appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "and·he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "and·all" (root כל, 88x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·waters', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְכֹ֨ל [and·all] (56) + אֲשֶׁ֤ר [which] (501) + יִגַּע־בּוֹ֙ [he·touches·him] (91) + הַזָּ֔ב [the·one·with·discharge] (14) + וְיָדָ֖יו [and·his·hands] (36) + לֹא־שָׁטַ֣ף [did·not·rinse] (420) + בַּמָּ֑יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְכִבֶּ֧ס [and·he·shall·wash] (88) + בְּגָדָ֛יו [his·clothes] (25) + וְרָחַ֥ץ [and·he·shall·wash] (304) + בַּמַּ֖יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·he·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 2126.
Onkelos
And anyone whom the one with the discharge touches, when he has not rinsed his hands in water, shall launder his garments and bathe in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Rashi
וידיו לא שטף כמים [AND WHOMSOEVER HE THAT HATH THE ISSUE] TOUCHETH AND HE HATH NOT RINSED HIS HANDS IN WATER [… SHALL BE UNCLEAN UNTIL THE EVEN] — "and has not rinsed his hands” means: so long as he (the זב) has not immersed himself to cleanse himself from his uncleanness: even if he has ceased from his issue and has counted seven clean days (v. 13) but still lacks immersion he communicates uncleanness in all forms of defilment peculiar to him. And the reason why Scripture expresses the immersion of the whole body of the זב by the term “rinsing his hands” is to teach you that the hidden parts of the body (בית הסתרים, the inside of the mouth, ear, nose, etc., and the folds between adjoining portions of the body, קמטים) do not require “the coming of water” upon them (i. e. need not become wet when he immerses himself), but only such a limb which is visible, such as the hands (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 4 5).
Ramban
AND WHOMSOEVER ‘HAZAV’ (HE THAT HATH THE ISSUE) TOUCHETH, WITHOUT HAVING RINSED HIS HANDS IN WATER, HE SHALL WASH HIS CLOTHES, AND BATHE HIMSELF IN WATER, AND BE UNCLEAN UNTIL THE EVEN. Scripture calls the immersion [of the whole body of the impure object] “rinsing in water,” as is indicated by the verse here stating, and every vessel of wood [touched by a zav] shall be ‘rinsed’ in water [which means completely “immersed” in water], and similarly it calls the immersion of an [impure] garment “washing,” thus saying, then it shall be ‘washed’ the second time, and shall be clean. The reason for these expressions is that it is necessary that there should be nothing interposing during the immersion [between the water and the utensil or the person], but he is to rinse his whole body in the water, even as the verse states, it shall be scoured, and rinsed in water, similar to the expression, ‘nachal shoteiph’ (an overflowing stream). And the meaning of the verse [here which specifies the hands] is because touching is done with the hands; therefore the verse states that when the zav touches anyone with his hands, and he has not “rinsed” them yet [i.e., “immersed” them, as explained above] by “rinsing” his whole body in water, that other person is impure. This is as if the verse had said, “and whomsoever he that hath the issue toucheth with his hands, and he hath not yet bathed himself in water on the day of his purification, he shall wash his clothes, [and be impure until the even].” Scripture had to use the term “rinsing,” in order to teach that the “bathing” it mentioned in the verse, and he shall bathe his flesh in running water, should be by means of rinsing and rubbing, so as to remove anything interposing [between the water and his body], as I have explained. It would not have been correct for Scripture to say that “whomsoever he that has an issue touches, after having rinsed his hands in water, will not be rendered impure,” [from which we would deduce that if he has not rinsed his hands in water, he shall be impure, thus indicating that his impurity is conveyed through his fingers], for He has already said, that whoever toucheth the flesh of him that hath the issue, meaning any part of the zav, is impure, the same law applying to objects that he lies on and rides on, and anything on which he sat, until he is purified of his issue, and he shall bathe his flesh in running water, and shall be clean. Rather, Scripture [in using the term “rinsing”] alludes to his purification by means of complete immersion, as I have explained. And our Rabbis have said that Scripture expresses the immersion of the [whole] body of the zav by the term “rinsing of hands,” in order to teach you that the hidden parts of the body [such as the inside of the mouth, etc.] do not require “the coming of water” upon them, but only limbs which are visible, such as the hands. The reason for the impurity of a man that suffers a flux is because it is a serious illness, and one of th...
Ibn Ezra
"And has not rinsed his hands in water" — it would have appeared to us that any food or similar item touched by the zav, where the touching was done with rinsed hands, would not be impure, since he had not touched the place of the discharge. But when we saw that all our ancestors explained "his hands" as equivalent to his body, we accepted their words. According to the plain sense (peshat), when a clean person is touched by the zav and the zav's hands were rinsed, the clean person becomes impure but his garments do not; whereas if the hands were not rinsed, his garments also become impure — and this is like the case of "whatever is beneath it."
Chizkuni
כל אשר יגע בו הזב וגו, “anything that the person who had the emission touches, etc.” this is not really the place where this verse should have been written. It should have been written after verse 13: וכי יטהר הזב מזובו, “when the person concerned has become purified again from this contamination;” i.e. before the seven days he has to count have expired. The reason why it was written here and not there, is since the Torah had already been in the middle of dealing with this status of a person who touches ritually pure things while himself being ritually contaminated, the Torah saw fit to stick to that subject matter. וידיו לא שטף במים, “without first having rinsed his hands with water;” on this line Rabbi Elazar ben Aroch commented that the act of purifying one’s hands by washing them with water is a biblical commandment. [It is not just a Rabbinical decree. Ed.] Actually, the line “rinsed with water,” is an elegant way of saying that immersion in a ritual bath is necessary. We find this confirmed in Psalms 26,6 where David says: ארחץ בנקיון כפי, ”I wash my hands in innocence;” [he does not refer to tap water, but to a ritual bath. Ed.]
Rabbeinu Bahya
וידיו לא שטף במים, “before he rinsed his hands in water.” The Torah does not mean this literally but means an immersion of the whole body in a ritual bath (compare Maimonides Mikvaot 1,2). The reason the Torah used the expression שטף is because the Torah wanted to indicate that nothing must prevent the water from touching the entire surface of the body. In other words, the water must be applied to the whole body just as when you wash your hands the entire hand is touched by the water. The word occurs in 6,21 ומורק ושוטף במים, “purged and rinsed in water,” where it clearly means that the copper vessel of which the Torah speaks must be completely covered by water. We find the word also in Jeremiah 47,2, לנחל שוטף, “the waters shall become a raging torrent.” According to Rashi, the use of the word for “rinsing” mentioned here means that if the water in the ritual bath did not enter hidden crevices of the body but came into contact only with surfaces of the body this would suffice. Just as the hand has no hidden crevice, so only the parts of the body which can easily be accessed by the water are meant.
Tur HaArokh
וידיו לא שטף במים, “without having rinsed his hands in water.” Nachmanides writes that in this instance the Torah uses the word שטף to describe immersion in the purifying waters of the mikveh. The same expression had been used by the Torah for someone instead of immersing his body, immersing his ritually contaminated vessels.
Rashbam
. וידיו לא שטף במים, the zav did not immerse himself in a ritual bath.. This is the way the sages interpret the words above (compare Rashi) Personally, I believe that the plain meaning of these words above is that the person experiencing these drippings and sticky semen adhering to his flesh mentioned in verse 3 has not yet removed this from himself. The Torah uses an elegant way saying “he has not washed it off with water,” basically, it refers to a removal by wiping or scraping his skin including his glans. The lesson here is that a simple immersion in a ritual bath, if not after the removal of the offending material, does not accomplish its purpose of ritually cleansing the afflicted party. This has been explained in detail in Niddah 15 where the words in our verse are understood as “although he had previously immersed himself he still remains ritually impure, seeing he had not first cleansed himself physically. Spiritual cleanliness presupposes physical cleanliness.” Anything or anyone touching the offending fluid (until it has thoroughly dried, congealed) becomes contaminated ritually. The expression שטיפת ידיו במים, loosely translated as “immersing one’s hands in water,” is used here in a sense similar to Proverbs 30,20 where the author describes the unfaithful wife as “wiping her mouth” after indulging in illicit sex, proclaiming that now that she has “wiped the offending residue of her indulgence,” she has not committed any sin. Solomon describes the scenario sarcastically, of course. A similar scenario occurs in Judges 3,24, where Eglon’s servants assumed that their king was still busy using his private toilet and this was why he did not open the door for them. The expression used there was מסיך הוא את רגליו, an elegant way of referring to someone urinating or excreting. Here the Torah uses the elegant way of referring to the sticky mess still adhering to the afflicted party’s body as ידיו לא שטף במים, “he did not rinse his hands in water.” In other words, he had not yet gotten rid of the offensive material causing the ritual impurity in the first place. The expression is used without recourse to elegance in Leviticus 6,21 where the words ומורק ושוטף במים mean: ”it has to be purged and thoroughly rinsed out in water.” The fatty substances of the sin offering in that vessel have to be cleaned out. In Isaiah 28,2 we also read about מים כבירים שוטפים, “the destructive force of mighty waters.” It sweeps away anything before its force, “cleans” it out. In Job 14,19 we also encounter the expression שטף in that sense, i.e. “torrents wash away earth.”
And the earthen vessel that he who has the issue touches shall be broken; and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
verse value 2459
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "the·one·with·discharge" (הַזָּ֖ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "that·he·shall·touch·in·it" (אֲשֶׁר־יִגַּע־בּ֥וֹ, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "that·he·shall·touch·in·it" (אֲשֶׁר־יִגַּע־בּ֥וֹ), "and·all·vessel·of·wood" (וְכׇ֨ל־כְּלִי־עֵ֔ץ), "shall·be·rinsed" (יִשָּׁטֵ֖ף). The root כלי appears 2 times in this verse. 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·he·shall·touch·in·it" (root נגע, 85x in Leviticus); "in·the·waters" (root מים, 41x in Leviticus); "the·one·with·discharge" (root זוב, 29x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'shall·be·broken', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: וּכְלִי־חֶ֛רֶשׂ [and·vessel·of·clay] (574) + אֲשֶׁר־יִגַּע־בּ֥וֹ [that·he·shall·touch·in·it] (592) + הַזָּ֖ב [the·one·with·discharge] (14) + יִשָּׁבֵ֑ר [shall·be·broken] (512) + וְכׇ֨ל־כְּלִי־עֵ֔ץ [and·all·vessel·of·wood] (276) + יִשָּׁטֵ֖ף [shall·be·rinsed] (399) + בַּמָּֽיִם [in·the·waters] (92) = 2459.
Onkelos
And an earthen vessel that the one with the discharge touches shall be broken, and any wooden vessel shall be rinsed in water.
Rashi
וכלי חרס אשר יגע בו הזב AND THE VESSEL OF EARTH THAT HE WHO HATH THE ISSUE TOUCHETH [SHALL BE BROKEN] — One might think that the law applies also if he touched it from outside (its exterior) etc., as it is stated in Torath Cohanim (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Section 3 1).
Chizkuni
וכלי חרש אשר יגע בו, “and any earthen vessel which the person afflicted with involuntary issue touches will have to be broken;” in this verse the Torah uses the pronoun בו, implying touch from the outside, whereas in Leviticus 6,21 where the Torah wrote about holy things within an earthen vessel it stated that that vessel must be broken, as it cannot be used for a profane purpose anymore, some of the holy stuff having been absorbed by it, the same pronoun is used, instead of בתוכו, “inside it.” From this we derive, seeing that we have stated that the zav contaminates only an airspace, that if here the Torah used the word בו, it must mean that even indirect touching confers ritual impurity here. This impurity is called tumat hesset, and in practice it means even indirect contact such as sitting on top of several blankets confers this impurity even to the lowest blanket in that stack, or even shaking something so that it will come into contact with the source of the impurity. (Sifra)
And when he who has an issue is cleansed of his issue, then he shall number to himself seven days for his cleansing, and wash his clothes; and he shall bathe his flesh in running water, and shall be clean.
verse value 3544 — ל֜וֹ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 64 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֜וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (ל֜וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·when·he·shall·be·pure" (וְכִֽי־יִטְהַ֤ר, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·when·he·shall·be·pure" (וְכִֽי־יִטְהַ֤ר), "and·he·shall·count" (וְסָ֨פַר). The root טהר appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "days" (root יום, 112x in Leviticus); "his·flesh" (root בשר, 56x in Leviticus); "seven" (root שבע, 54x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root ספר ("and·he·shall·count") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·clothes', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Onkelos
And when the one with the discharge is cleansed of his discharge, he shall count for himself seven days for his purification, and he shall launder his garments and bathe his flesh in spring water, and he shall be pure.
Rashi
וכי יטהר means WHEN HE CEASETH [FROM HIS ISSUE] (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 5 1). שבעת ימים לטהרתו [THEN SHALL HE NUMBER TO HIMSELF] SEVEN DAYS FROM THE DATE WHEN HE CEASED — i. e. seven days clean (free) from the uncleanness resulting from the issue, i. e. in which he sees no issue, and all of them (of the seven days) must be consecutive (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 5 6).
Ibn Ezra
"For his cleansing" — [meaning] from the day of his cleansing.
Chizkuni
לטהרתו, “after his process of purification has begun when the emission has stopped and seven days had elapsed. ורחץ בשרו במים חיים, “and he shall bathe his flesh in running water, [emanating from the earth, i.e. a spring; Ed.] The person suffering from such involuntary seminal emissions cannot merely immerse himself in a ritual bath, but requires “living water,” as opposed to stagnant water, such as a collection of rain water. On the other hand, his vessels, as well as a person suffering from the skin disease tzoraat, do not require spring water for their purification.
And on the eighth day he shall take to him two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, and come before Hashem to the door of the tent of meeting, and give them to the priest.
verse value 4030 — יְהֹוָ֗ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 69 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֗ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 4030 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "or" (א֥וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·eighth" (הַשְּׁמִינִ֗י, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "he·shall·take·to·him" (יִֽקַּֽח־לוֹ֙), "and·he·shall·give·them" (וּנְתָנָ֖ם). The root שנים appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "to·the·priest" (root כהן, 195x in Leviticus); "sons·of" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'pigeon', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 8 words.
Onkelos
And on the eighth day he shall take for himself two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and he shall come before Hashem to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, and he shall give them to the priest.
Ibn Ezra
"And the offering is an olah and a chatat" — because the discharge is chastisement for sin.
Chizkuni
יקח לו, “he (the priest) will take on his behalf;” the word לו here means that these birds must be owned, i.e. paid for, by the person on whose behalf the birds will be offered as a sacrifice.
Targum Yonatan
And on the eighth day let him take for himself two large turtle doves, or two young pigeons, and bring them before the Lord at the gate of the tabernacle of ordinance, and deliver them to the priest.
And the priest shall offer them, the one for a sin-offering, and the other for a burnt-offering; and the priest shall make atonement for him before Hashem for his issue.
verse value 2221 — אֶחָ֣ד = 13 (echad/ahavah)
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 51 letters. Notable word values: "one" (אֶחָ֣ד) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "them" (אֹתָם֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·the·one" (וְהָאֶחָ֖ד, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 80: the·priest, the·priest. The root כהן appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "the·priest" (root כהן, 195x in Leviticus); "for·him" (root על, 127x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'burnt-offering', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְעָשָׂ֤ה [and·he·shall·make] (381) + אֹתָם֙ [them] (441) + הַכֹּהֵ֔ן [the·priest] (80) + אֶחָ֣ד [one] (13) + חַטָּ֔את [sin-offering] (418) + וְהָאֶחָ֖ד [and·the·one] (24) + עֹלָ֑ה [burnt-offering] (105) + וְכִפֶּ֨ר [and·he·shall·atone] (306) + עָלָ֧יו [for·him] (116) + הַכֹּהֵ֛ן [the·priest] (80) + לִפְנֵ֥י [to·face·of] (170) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + מִזּוֹבֽוֹ [from·his·discharge] (61) = 2221.
Onkelos
And the priest shall prepare them — one as a sin offering and one as a burnt offering — and the priest shall make atonement for him before Hashem on account of his discharge.
And if the flow of seed go out from a man, then he shall bathe all his flesh in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 3735
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "and·man" (וְאִ֕ישׁ, 4 letters) and the longest is "all·his·body" (אֶת־כׇּל־בְּשָׂר֖וֹ, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "when·there·issues" (כִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "and·man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus); "all·his·body" (root בשר, 56x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root שכבה ("emission·of·seed") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'emission·of·seed', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְאִ֕ישׁ [and·man] (317) + כִּֽי־תֵצֵ֥א [when·there·issues] (521) + מִמֶּ֖נּוּ [from·him] (136) + שִׁכְבַת־זָ֑רַע [emission·of·seed] (999) + וְרָחַ֥ץ [and·he·shall·bathe] (304) + בַּמַּ֛יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + אֶת־כׇּל־בְּשָׂר֖וֹ [all·his·body] (959) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·he·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 3735.
Onkelos
And a man from whom an emission of semen issues shall bathe his entire flesh in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Ibn Ezra
"When there issues from him" — without his will. "Emission of seed" (shichvat zera) — like "the layer of the dew" (shichvat ha-tal), from the root of "who can cause it to lie down" (mi yashkiv).
Chizkuni
ואיש כי תצא ממנו שכבת זרע, “and if a flow of seminal emission originated from a man;” the word איש in this verse exempts a minor from this legislation, as long as that minor is not yet nine years of age and one day. כי תצא ממנו, as long as this semen has not left his body it does not confer ritual impurity. Seeing that this sounds somewhat superfluous, the Rabbis interpreted this to mean that both a priest with gonorrhea and an ordinary priest who experience an erection should take hold of their member to prevent the emission until he has swallowed the truma which he was eating so that it will not become contaminated. (Sifra) ורחץ במים, “he may even immerse himself in a ritual bath;” [does not require spring water. Ed.] את כל בשרו, the bath must contain enough water to cover his entire body at one time when he immerses himself in it. According to halachah this is 3 cubits high, 1 cubit wide and 1 cubit deep, or approx. 530000 cubic centimeters.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ורחץ במים את כל בשרו, “he must wash his entire body with water.” This is the only time in connection with the legislation of ritual impurity that the Torah speaks of washing “the entire body.” Even when purification from more severe levels of ritual impurity is discussed, such as the person suffering a discharge, the Torah did not demand that “the whole body” be washed. The reason for all this may have to do with the four basic raw materials man is made of, i.e. fire, spirit (wind), water and dust. This was not the order in which these elements appear in the report of the creation in Genesis where the first element mentioned is the spirit (רוח) in Genesis 1,1, followed by water and fire and dust (earth). In the Sefer Yetzira, (oldest kabbalistic text) air-(רוח)- fire-water are listed as the three “mothers,” so-called because they are like mothers to all that is found in the universe. These three elements are perceived as “descended” from the other, i.e. air begets water and water begets fire. This view is supported by verses from the Scriptures, of course. When the Torah writes in Genesis 1,2: בהו, וחושך; this means that fire is descended from water. The words ורוח אלו-הים מרחפת על פני המים mean that the water is “descended” from the element רוח, “air or spirit.” This is the reason why in our daily prayers we refer to the sequence משיב הרוח ומוריד הגשם, “who makes the air blow and makes the rain descend.” Support for the statement that fire is “descended” from water comes from the scientific fact that fire is [or at least may be Ed.] extracted from water. (compare Talmud Beytzah Mishnah folio 33 that “on the festival it is forbidden to extract fire from the water.”) [apparently experiments were conducted with glass bottles filled with water being exposed to intense sunlight. After a while, due to the water having become overheated, the glass burst into flames. quoted by Rashi. Ed.] Dust, i.e. earth is “descended” from fire. The reference is to the fertiliser left behind after something has been burned up. [Dust or earth in this instance refers to the earth and its ability to produce crops, etc. Perhaps the earth thrown up as volcanic ash is the best example of fire “producing” fertile earth. Ed.] When these three elements surface as part of a human being they have been metamorphosed, the white part of man corresponds to the element water; the red part of man corresponds to the element fire; the black part of man corresponds to the element dust=earth. The element רוח, “spirit,” which is a fundamental part of man is the basic element and dominates all the other elements of which he is composed. It is common knowledge that every such element contains within it particles of each of the four elements; seeing that this is so whenever one of these elements displays signs of becoming dominant, the other parts of the same element which up to that time were dormant within their respective “master” element, now awaken. Let us say that the רוח המתאוה, “the element called the spirit of desire“ awakens in a person, the parallel minor particles of that element which had been lying dormant within the other three elements now “awaken” even while the other three elements and their respective minor particles within them remain “asleep, dormant.” Seeing that the element רוח was the basic element which aroused these “dormant” particles of it within the other elements, it may be considered as “eternally awake, never dormant.” Seeing that this is so our verse demands that the person who has had an emission of sperm wash his entire body as due to the desire awakened in all parts of the body as a result of that emission, or “wakeful state of the spirit of desire,” the secondary particles of that spirit throughout the other parts of the body have been awakened, have been activated. Seeing they were all participants, they all have to be immersed in water for the entire body to become purified. The element called “spirit of desire” is different from the other three elements making up the body, as the other three are “dead” when the body is asleep. This fourth element, the רוח המתאוה, “the spirit of desire,” is not “dead” even while the body is asleep. The reason that there is a need for purification of the entire body in water is that the drop of sperm in question was not even potentially able to fertilize a woman’s ovum seeing that its “partners” in the body of the person emitting it had been asleep, i.e. “dead” when this emission occurred. They had not agreed to it, so to speak. Seeing that as a result of these considerations the sperm was defective, useless, it produced a greater degree of impurity than normal cohabitation between man and woman. When you look at verse 18 in our verse describing cohabitation between a man and a woman (while both are awake I presume), the Torah, while requiring that they both “wash in water,” does not require that they bathe their entire body in water as it did here concerning a nocturnal emission. The reason is that all parts of the “elements” were “awake” in both parties to this sexual union, i.e. gave their consent, thus enabling the sperm to potentially fertilise an ovum. A further consideration explaining the difference in the degree of purification required between people who cohabit and someone who experiences a nocturnal involuntary emission of semen, is that an intentional emission of semen prepares the semen to be imbued with the power to become alive, as it represents the natural urges of the body emitting it, its true purpose. Although the Torah does decree impurity for a person indulging in such a normal, in fact mandatory activity if he wants to fulfill the commandment of being fruitful, most people are not dominated by such lofty considerations at the time they indulge their libido. [I have paraphrased this somewhat. Ed.] However, when semen is emitted nocturnally, the very material may be considered as at least ”semi-dead” seeing that the spirit of the person is asleep, he is not in the least motivated by the intention of fulfilling a positive commandment. You may wish to compare our verse with Deut. 23,11-12: “If there be amongst you a man who will not be clean because of a nocturnal emission of semen, he shall go outside the camp; he shall not enter the midst of the camp; when it will be toward evening he shall wash (immerse) himself in water, ירחץ במים, and when the sun sets he may enter the midst of the camp.” In that instance the Torah does not mention the words כל בשרו, “all of his flesh,” as it did in our verse. The meaning of the words ירחץ בשרו therefore is the same as in other similar verses, i.e. את כל בשרו, “all of his flesh.”
And every garment, and every skin, on which is the flow of seed, shall be washed with water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 2630
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 48 letters. The shortest word is "upon·it" (עָלָ֖יו, 4 letters) and the longest is "on·which·there·is" (אֲשֶׁר־יִהְיֶ֥ה, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·all·cloth" (וְכׇל־בֶּ֣גֶד), "and·all·leather" (וְכׇל־ע֔וֹר). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "on·which·there·is" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "and·it·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "upon·it" (root על, 127x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'emission·of·seed', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְכׇל־בֶּ֣גֶד [and·all·cloth] (65) + וְכׇל־ע֔וֹר [and·all·leather] (332) + אֲשֶׁר־יִהְיֶ֥ה [on·which·there·is] (531) + עָלָ֖יו [upon·it] (116) + שִׁכְבַת־זָ֑רַע [emission·of·seed] (999) + וְכֻבַּ֥ס [and·shall·be·washed] (88) + בַּמַּ֖יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·it·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 2630.
Onkelos
And every garment and every hide upon which there is an emission of semen shall be laundered in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Ibn Ezra
It would have appeared to us that the garment or leather requires washing whether the seed on it is moist or dry — but the truth is as the [oral] tradition teaches.
Chizkuni
אשר יהיה עליו שכבת זרע, “(garments or skin) which have been splattered with semen of a human being;” even only partially; (Sifra) just as when this subject was discussed previously it referred to fresh, moist semen, so here too the Torah speaks of freshly emitted semen, not dried out semen.
The woman also with whom a man shall lie carnally, they shall both bathe themselves in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 3676
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 44 letters. The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֨ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "emission·of·seed" (שִׁכְבַת־זָ֑רַע, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·they·shall·bathe" (וְרָחֲצ֣וּ). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "and·they·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'emission·of·seed', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְאִשָּׁ֕ה [and·woman] (312) + אֲשֶׁ֨ר [which] (501) + יִשְׁכַּ֥ב [he·shall·lie·down] (332) + אִ֛ישׁ [man] (311) + אֹתָ֖הּ [her] (406) + שִׁכְבַת־זָ֑רַע [emission·of·seed] (999) + וְרָחֲצ֣וּ [and·they·shall·bathe] (310) + בַמַּ֔יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמְא֖וּ [and·they·shall·be·impure] (62) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 3676.
Onkelos
And a woman with whom a man lies with an emission of semen — both of them shall bathe in water, and they shall be impure until evening.
Rashi
ורחצו במים THEY SHALL BOTH LAVE THEMSELVES IN WATER — It is a decree of the King that a woman should become unclean through sexual intercourse. The reason is not because of the law of “one who touches שכבת זרע” (who, according to Leviticus 22:7 is unclean; cf. Sifra on that verse) for in her case it is מגע בית הסתרים and this does not render her unclean (Niddah 41b).
Sforno
ואשה אשר ישכב איש אותה note that the Torah does not write איש כי ישכב את אשה, “when a man sleeps with a woman,” which is the Torah’s normal way of introducing such subjects, i.e. emphasizing the predominating role of the male in the sexual union. The reason for this change in syntax is to teach that unless the colour of the fluid originating in her vagina is reddish it does not confer ritual impurity. The only time the whitish seminal excretion of a woman confers ritual impurity on her male partner is when the man initiates the customary sexual union with her even if the seminal fluid remains in בית הסתרים “hidden” parts within the orifices of the woman, has not seen the light of day.
Or HaChaim
ורחצו במים, they shall both bathe themselves in a ritual bath. The reason the Torah again mentions the male partner and the requirement that he has to bathe himself -something mentioned expressly in verse 16- is explained by Torat Kohanim as teaching that both he and she are subject to exactly the same procedure when it comes to the immersion in a ritual bath. You may argue that if that was all the verse teaches us there was no need to write ורחצו..וטמאו, but we could have derived all this from the letter ו in the word ואשה, seeing we have numerous instances where that letter was used to compare the laws in a later paragraph to those spelled out in the Torah in a previous paragraph (compare the first few chapters of Leviticus)! The fact is that Torat Kohanim already used the letter ו in the word ואשה to teach that it includes a minor of three years and one day. Accordingly, if the Torah had not written the word ורחצו, I would have interpreted that letter as referring to details about the immersion in the ritual bath instead of interpreting it as including a girl of three years plus. We would have had no extraneous letter or word to teach us that even a three-year old girl would have to purify herself if she had become the victim of sexual intercourse with a male. Had it not been for the interpretation of the sages in Torat Kohanim, I would have interpreted the words אשר תצא ממנו שכבת זרע in verse 16 to mean that unless the semen actually leaves the body of the man who became aroused by it, and is visible on the male's flesh, there is no need for a ritual bath because all of it has been absorbed internally. The same law would not apply to a woman; she could become ritually defiled even if the semen entered her without a trace of it being visible on her body. If she touched herself internally and came into contact with the semen she would be ritually impure. The Torah had to write ורחצו, "they have to bathe themselves," to make it clear that both the male and the female partner in such intercourse have to undergo the same procedure to become ritually clean again although the manner in which they each contracted the impurity differed. We are now able to explain the additional letter ו at the beginning of the word ואשה to mean that on occasion also the woman may be subject to the same law as the male in that her hidden parts do not become defiled if her partner cohabited with her in a manner which is not the standard way of conducting sexual intercourse [anal intercourse, for instance, Ed.]. This would be so according to the view of the majority of rabbis cited in Yevamot 34. According to the view of Rabbi Yehudah there, the example of such a הלכה would be a virgin bride on her wedding night. The rabbis derived this rule from the word אותה. Had the Torah not written the word ורחצו and I would have had to figure out the need for both the man and the woman who was his partner to bathe themselves in a ritual bath based only on the additional letter ו...
Chizkuni
אשר ישכב איש אותה שכבת זרע, “also the woman with whom a man had had carnal intercourse involving the ejaculation of semen;” the wording of this line teaches that any ejaculation into thin air is not considered as carnal intercourse for this law. ורחצו במים, they have both to immerse themselves in a ritual bath; just as when this subject of “washing” i.e. immersing oneself in a ritual bath did not include washing out one’s private parts, the woman’s vagina, so here too, only the surfaces of the skin have to be in contact with the water of the ritual bath, but all the skin has to be made accessible to that water, [cleaning fingernails and toenails, for instance. Ed.]
And if a woman have an issue, and her issue in her flesh be blood, she shall be in her impurity seven days; and whoever touches her shall be unclean until the even.
verse value 3728
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 63 letters. The shortest word is "blood" (דָּ֛ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·all·who·touches" (וְכׇל־הַנֹּגֵ֥עַ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 14: one·with·discharge, her·discharge. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "when·she·shall·be" (כִּֽי־תִהְיֶ֣ה). The root היה appears 3 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "when·she·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "days" (root יום, 112x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·her·body', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 8 words.
Onkelos
And a woman who has a discharge — when her discharge in her flesh is blood — she shall be in her separation for seven days, and whoever touches her shall be impure until evening.
Rashi
כי תהיה זבה AND IF A WOMAN HAVE AN ISSUE — One might think that this means: if there be an, issue from any limb of her body (e. g. ear, nose)! It, however, states in a law referring to this matter, (Leviticus 20:18) “and she hath uncovered the fountain of her blood” — only that issue of blood therefore makes her unclean which comes from her fountain (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Section 4 2). דם יהיה זובה בבשרה AND HER ISSUE IN HER FLESH BE BLOOD — Her issue does not come under the term “flux” to cause uncleanness except if it is red (cf. Niddah 19a). בנדתה [SHE SHALL BE] PUT APART [SEVEN DAYS] — The word has the same meaning as, (Job. 18:18) “and they shall drive him out (ינדהו) of the world” — and her state is so called because she is set apart from the touch of any person (separated, so that no-one shall touch her). תהיה בנדתה [SEVEN DAYS] SHALL SHE BE IN HER SEPARATION. even though she has seen a show of blood only once (lit., only the first show — i. e., not 7 days continuously) (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Section 4 5).
Ibn Ezra
The Torah has concluded the section on the male and now begins the female. "In her flesh" — the female organ. The commentators who applied this phrase in the case of the ba'al keri to "all his flesh" erred in limiting it to the organ alone; the proof is the word "all."
Sforno
ואשה כי תהיה זבה דם, here the Torah teaches rules concerning the menstruating woman and the one afflicted with untimely discharges from her vagina, stating that purification of the latter requires two offerings, a sin offering and a burnt offering. The Torah testifies by the nature of the offerings required that the disease described “does not come out of the blue,” but was the result of improper thoughts or even improper actions which preceded it. Original woman who was punished for her sin was not only punished for eating from the tree of knowledge, but for the thoughts which ran through her mind prior to translating sinful thought into sinful action. We believe that this is reflected in the wording of the punishment הרבה ארבה עצבונך, “I will greatly multiply your discomfort” (during pregnancy and giving birth) (Genesis 3,16) The punishment fitted the crime which was not something that was the result of a sudden impulse. The seven days until purification from the date of the end of the state of zavah is achieved, gives her time to reflect and to think pure thoughts as opposed to the time she had originally spent before violating G’d’s commandment not to eat from that tree. When the proper thoughts course through her mind during these seven days called appropriately שבעה נקיים, seven days of purification, her mind and not only her body will have been cleansed from improper attitudes so that the ritual immersion cleanses both body and mind. When this is the case, the two offerings required by the zavah will bring her the atonement for previous misdemeanours both in thought and in action. The sin offering atones for sinful action, the burnt offering for forbidden thoughts.
Chizkuni
שבעת ימים תהיה בנדתה, “she will remain in her state of ritual impurity for a full seven days;” if she immerses herself before evening the immersion is not valid. (Talmud Pessachim, folio 90)
Rabbeinu Bahya
ואשה כי תהיה זבה, דם יהיה זובה בבשרה, “when a woman has a discharge,-the discharge from her flesh being blood;” the reason the Torah adds the words דם יהיה זובה is to contrast it with the discharge of a man who emits a whitish fluid. שבעת ימים תהיה בנדתה, “she will remain in her state of separation for seven days;” even if she saw only a single discharge she must still remain in her state of impurity for seven days. This entire paragraph discusses the normal menstruation of a woman experiencing her monthly cycle. The verses are rather inconclusive when read at first glance. We do not find any mention of the woman in question requiring immersion in a ritual bath; the only thing we are told is that if someone touches the bed she has lain on while she is in the state of impurity described, such a person is contaminated by her ritual impurity. The Torah does say (verse 21) that this second person will have to immerse himself in a ritual bath in order to become ritually pure again. We find a responsum quoted by Tosafot Yuma 78 that Rabbi Yehuda Gaon was told in answer to his inquiry that the requirement of a menstruous woman to immerse herself in a ritual bath at the conclusion of the seven days (minimum) is a Biblical requirement derived by simple logic (קל וחומר). “If someone merely touching her bed requires immersion in a ritual bath in order to regain his ritual purity, she, who is the source of that impurity, most certainly does not require any less.” The Talmud Shabbat 64 understands the words “she shall remain seven days in her state of separation” to mean that this is the minimum length of time before she is allowed to immerse herself in a ritual bath. This is in contrast to her companion who has touched her bed who may immerse himself immediately and be ritually clean after sunset on that day. The Torah makes her regaining her ritual purity subject to two conditions, a) the number of days after she started menstruating, b) that she immerses herself in a ritual bath. Some of the authorities such as Maimonides (Issurei Biah 4:3) derived the law from the words ורחצו במים, “they are to immerse themselves in water” (Verse 18). They consider that verse as the בנין אב, precedent, for all similar situations when people who have incurred ritual impurity have to immerse themselves in a ritual bath in order to regain their status of being ritually pure. Our sages (Ketuvot 61) have said further that a woman who is ritually unclean due to her menstruation may perform all the normal tasks she ordinarily performs for her husband, the exception being that she must not pour wine or water into his cup, put linen on his bed, or wash his hands or feet. Seeing that she is so used to pour drinks into his cup, as long as there is a reminder on the table to remind him not to touch her due to her state of impurity she may even fill his cup. One such “reminder” would be that she performs this task with her alternate hand, i.e. if she is right-handed, with her left hand. She is not to pour directly into his cup even with the left hand but to put the jug on the table after having filled it with her left hand. Abbaye used to put the cup of wine of her husband on top of the wine-casket at such times, whereas his colleague Rava’s wife put it at the side of his pillow. Changing the linen of the husband’s bed is only prohibited in the husband’s presence; when he is not present the wife may perform this chore. Washing her husband’s hands and feet is prohibited not only with hot water but even with cold water. If the wife contravened this rule and in the process touched her husband’s body this is considered equivalent to קירוב בשר, and even touching her husband only with her small finger is prohibited. She is not even allowed to pour the water on her husband without actually coming into contact with him. Such an act would result in too close an association between their minds. A person must endeavour to keep a certain distance from his wife during the days that she is נדה, menstrually impure. Our sages in Shabbat 13 base this on Leviticus 18,6 לא תקרבון לגלות ערותן, “you must not approach to uncover nakedness.” The word תקרבון, implies not to come even near the person with whom sexual contact is forbidden. Seeing that within woman is the organ which enables the formation of human beings one must always conduct oneself with her in a state of purity in order for the baby to be conceived in a state of purity and for it to be able to receive its soul in a state of purity. It is common knowledge that the various character traits of a personality are strongly influenced by the condition of mother and father at the time of the baby’s conception (Compare Nachmanides Iggeret Hakodesh chapter 5). Our sages in Keritut 2 have stated that if someone has sexual relations with a woman who is in a state of menstruation he becomes guilty of the penalty of karet, (premature death, or death without children). It is even forbidden to share the same bed with his wife if both husband and wife are fully clothed (Shabbat 13). This is based on Leviticus 18,19 לא תקרב לגלות ערותה, “do not approach (a woman in that state) to uncover her nakedness.” G’d has warned the Israelites not to conduct their sex lives in a manner similar to that of the Gentiles. If you will take a good look at this paragraph you will find that the Torah did not obligate the menstruous woman to offer a sacrifice at the termination of her period whereas the woman experiencing a discharge (of a similar nature, emanating from the same orifice in her body) has to bring an offering at the end of her purification period. The reason for this difference is that the monthly menstruation cycle is considered a “natural disease,” something that she does not get cured from during all her child-bearing years. This is why the Torah prescribed a fixed number of days which have to elapse before this “natural disease” is presumed to have disappeared. The discharge called זיבה is not of the same category; this is why when the Torah describes the phenomenon it emphasises that it occurs during the days of the month when menstruation cannot be expected (verse 25). Alternatively, this discharge may occur many days after she had finished her monthly cycle. This discharge is an abnormality just as the discharge of semen-like fluid in the male is an abnormality. In both instances the cure has to be followed by a sacrificial offering. It is worth noting that we are not familiar with the disease called נדה, menstrual discharge, amongst any other female species. It is something exclusive to the human species and due to the sin committed by the first woman when she ate from the tree of knowledge. According to Sotah 12 it was the result of a decree recorded at that time that not only she but all women after her would experience discomfort, pain, etc., in anything connected with conception, pregnancy, birthing, etc., (compare Genesis 3,16). Seeing that the beasts have no intelligence and their entire lives are not based on considerations involving reward and punishment, there is no reason to afflict the female of their species with such a natural disease. One may speculate that due to the spirit of impurity which has become an integral part of woman ever since that experience with the serpent, woman is able to display drops of blood on a mirror or glass surface after she has looked at it with intensity during the beginning of her state of menstruation. (compare what we wrote on Leviticus 12,2 at the end.) You should also know that although the state of being נדה is a “natural disease,” it is something beneficial for the fetus that will develop after she has been cured and has resumed marital relations with her husband, as during the period of her menstruation her body discharged extraneous, potentially harmful materials from her body. When a new fetus is conceived its conception occurs under biologically optimal conditions. The woman’s “blood” which is her contribution is in a medically purified state at that time. In that condition the fetus is able to receive Divine input, i.e. intelligence. [The author perceives of intelligence as an “angel,” intermediary between man and his G’d, according to Ibn Ezra’s introduction on Genesis. Ed.] Elimination of menstrual blood from a woman’s body is comparable to the removal of rust from iron. Only after this rust has been removed can the iron absorb the rays of sunlight in its full effectiveness. These considerations explain why the phenomenon of menstruation is found in human females but not in female animals. An allusion to this basic difference between man and beast is that baby animals derive their mother’s milk from a part of the body adjoining the sex of the animal, whereas human babies suckle on the mother’s breast which is far closer to the head, the seat of man’s intelligence. Each species derives its nutrients from areas adjacent to those representing its primary function.
Rashbam
דם יהיה זובה, the reddish colour causes the ritual impurity here, not the whitish colour, suggesting seminal fluid.
And every thing that she lies upon in her impurity shall be unclean; every thing also that she sits upon shall be unclean.
verse value 3351
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 40 letters. The shortest word is "and·all" (וְכֹל֩, 3 letters) and the longest is "that·she·shall·sit" (אֲשֶׁר־תֵּשֵׁ֥ב, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 116: upon·it, upon·it. The root כל appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "upon·it" (root על, 127x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'it·shall·be·impure', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְכֹל֩ [and·all] (56) + אֲשֶׁ֨ר [that] (501) + תִּשְׁכַּ֥ב [she·shall·lie] (722) + עָלָ֛יו [upon·it] (116) + בְּנִדָּתָ֖הּ [in·her·menstruation] (461) + יִטְמָ֑א [it·shall·be·impure] (60) + וְכֹ֛ל [and·all] (56) + אֲשֶׁר־תֵּשֵׁ֥ב [that·she·shall·sit] (1203) + עָלָ֖יו [upon·it] (116) + יִטְמָֽא [it·shall·be·impure] (60) = 3351.
Onkelos
And everything upon which she lies during her separation shall be impure, and everything upon which she sits shall be impure.
Targum Yonatan
Whatever such an one shall lie upon during the time of her separation shall be unclean; and whatever such an one sitteth upon during the time of her separation shall be unclean.
And whoever touches her bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 1473
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 40 letters. The shortest word is "he·shall·wash" (יְכַבֵּ֧ס, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·all·who·touches" (וְכׇל־הַנֹּגֵ֖עַ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 92: he·shall·wash, in·the·waters. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "her·bedding" (בְּמִשְׁכָּבָ֑הּ). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "and·all·who·touches" (root נגע, 85x in Leviticus); "his·clothes" (root בגד, 52x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'her·bedding', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְכׇל־הַנֹּגֵ֖עַ [and·all·who·touches] (184) + בְּמִשְׁכָּבָ֑הּ [her·bedding] (369) + יְכַבֵּ֧ס [he·shall·wash] (92) + בְּגָדָ֛יו [his·clothes] (25) + וְרָחַ֥ץ [and·he·shall·wash] (304) + בַּמַּ֖יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·he·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 1473.
Onkelos
And whoever touches her bed shall launder his garments and bathe in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Chizkuni
ורחץ במים, “he will have to immerse himself in a ritual bath and he remains ritually impure until nightfall.” It goes without saying that his partner in intercourse in a state of menstruation will have to do no less than the male. [The Torah here does not speak of the parties involved having deliberately ignored her state of menstruation, an act which is punished by death through heavenly intervention (Leviticus 20,18 for both.) Here the scenario is that during intercourse the woman suddenly sees some blood not having expected to do so. [No violation of the Torah’s law had been intended by either party. Ed.]
Targum Yonatan
And whoever toucheth her bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself with forty seahs of water, and be unclean until evening.
And whoever touches any thing that she sits upon shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 2535
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 50 letters. Verse gematria: 2535 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "upon·it" (עָלָ֑יו, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·all·who·touches" (וְכׇ֨ל־הַנֹּגֵ֔עַ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 92: he·shall·wash, in·the·waters. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "upon·it" (root על, 127x in Leviticus); "and·all·who·touches" (root נגע, 85x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'upon·it', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְכׇ֨ל־הַנֹּגֵ֔עַ [and·all·who·touches] (184) + בְּכׇל־כְּלִ֖י [in·all·object] (112) + אֲשֶׁר־תֵּשֵׁ֣ב [that·she·shall·sit] (1203) + עָלָ֑יו [upon·it] (116) + יְכַבֵּ֧ס [he·shall·wash] (92) + בְּגָדָ֛יו [his·clothes] (25) + וְרָחַ֥ץ [and·he·shall·wash] (304) + בַּמַּ֖יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·he·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 2535.
Onkelos
And whoever touches any vessel upon which she sits shall launder his garments and bathe in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Targum Yonatan
And whoever toucheth any thing upon which such an one hath sat shall wash his clothes, and bathe in forty seahs of water, and be unclean until evening.
And if he be on the bed, or on any thing on which she sits, when he touches it, he shall be unclean until the even.
verse value 2589
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 52 letters. The shortest word is "or" (א֧וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "sitting·upon·it" (יֹשֶֽׁבֶת־עָלָ֖יו, 8 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "on·the·bedding" (עַֽל־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֜ב), "which·she" (אֲשֶׁר־הִ֥וא), "sitting·upon·it" (יֹשֶֽׁבֶת־עָלָ֖יו). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "it" (root הוא, 102x in Leviticus); "or" (root או, 101x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'when·he·touches·it', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 2 words. Full calculation: וְאִ֨ם [and·if] (47) + עַֽל־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֜ב [on·the·bedding] (467) + ה֗וּא [it] (12) + א֧וֹ [or] (7) + עַֽל־הַכְּלִ֛י [upon·the·object] (165) + אֲשֶׁר־הִ֥וא [which·she] (513) + יֹשֶֽׁבֶת־עָלָ֖יו [sitting·upon·it] (828) + בְּנׇגְעוֹ־ב֑וֹ [when·he·touches·it] (139) + יִטְמָ֖א [he·shall·be·impure] (60) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 2589.
Onkelos
And if it is upon the bed or upon the vessel upon which she is sitting, when he touches it, he shall be impure until evening.
Rashi
ואם על המשכב הוא AND IF ONE BE ON HER PLACE OF REPOSE [OR ON ANY THING WHEREON SHE SITTETH] — This means, one who sleeps or sits on the place where she has slept or has sat even though he does not directly touch it (e. g. if there are covers upon the couch or the seat; for if he touches it vv. 21 and 22 apply); he also comes under the law of uncleanness that is stated in the above verse — that he requires washing of garments. על הכלי UPON A VESSEL — This is intended to add to משכב and מושב any article for riding on (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Section 4 15). בנגעו בו WHEN HE TOUCHETH IT — "it" (בו) — this refers only to מרכב which, as has just been stated, is included in the law on account of the words על הכלי. בנגעו בו יטמא WHEN HE TOUCHETH IT HE SHALL BE UNCLEAN, but does not require washing of the garments, because so far as the מרכב is concerned its being touched does not communicate uncleanness to people so that they in turn should render their garments unclean (cf. Mishnah Kelim 23:3).
Ibn Ezra
The meaning of "and if it is upon the bed" is that the verse refers back to the vessel upon which she sits — that is, a vessel placed upon the bed, or one vessel upon another; therefore the impurity is of a lesser degree. The Torah did not mention a saddle (merkav) for the woman because Scripture speaks according to the ordinary situation, yet the law is the same [in either case].
Chizkuni
ואם על המשכב הוא, “if he is on the bed (of his partner) with most of his body.” (Sifra) Some commentators understand the word הוא in this verse as referring to the person who has contracted the disease of involuntary seminal emission. According to them, we must understand the verse as follows: “if that blood which was on the couch or on any chair on which the woman in question has sat after having experienced the symptoms has now been touched or even if he touched the vessel or chair on which she had sat, he will remain ritually impure until nightfall after he has immersed himself in a ritual bath. Let us quote a practical example, using verse 17. We read there: וכל בגד אשר יהיה עליו שכבת זרע, “and every garment on which has come moist human semen, (Jewish) etc.,” you might well ask why this verse has been written at all. If someone who has only come into contact with the garment that had been stained with semen by its wearer has thereby become ritually impure, how much more so will someone who has been lying with the body from which this blood was emitted does not have to undergo purification rites? Answer: Jewish law does not permit a judge to impose a penalty based only on logic; unless the penalty has been spelled out in the Torah it cannot be imposed (as the guilty party will plead ignorance of the law.) We find the same thing Numbers 19,14: וכל הבא אל האהל וכל אשר באהל יטמא, “anyone entering such tent (containing a corpse) will become ritually defiled.” The beginning of the verse refers to someone whose body has partially entered the covered airspace within which the corpse lies. The second part speaks of someone whose entire body is within that airspace. It is no more than logical that the second party will not have to do less than the first party in order to purify himself. Nonetheless, because of the rule we just mentioned, the Torah had to spell this out.
Rashbam
'ואם על המשכב הוא וגו, if some sits or lies on something even indirectly in contact, מדרס, with the afflicted person chair or bed, etc., he will still become ritually contaminated by such indirect contact בנגעו בו יטמא עד הערב, even if the “contact” was so indirect as instead of sitting on the contaminated item one sat on a saddle supported by the contaminated item, the ritual impurity lasts until evening when immersion in a ritual bath removes it. He is then, however, not of a sufficiently severe degree of ritual impurity to contaminate clothing (even his own) over and beyond his body. In other words, in this kind of scenario the Torah did not add that he has to wash (immerse) his garments in order to become ritually pure again. (as it had done in verse 21 and 22, for instance) ואשר היא יושבת עליו, our sages (in Torat Kohanim zavim 4,18 understand this as referring to the relatively low level of ritual contamination called טומאת מרכב, see beginning of this verse).
And if any man lie with her, and her impurity be upon him, he shall be unclean seven days; and every bed on which he lies shall be unclean.
verse value 4774
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 63 letters. The shortest word is "and·if" (וְאִ֡ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·any·bedding" (וְכׇל־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֛ב, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 116: upon·him, upon·it. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "surely" (שָׁכֹב֩), "and·it·shall·be" (וּתְהִ֤י), "and·any·bedding" (וְכׇל־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֛ב). The root שכב appears 3 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "and·he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "upon·him" (root על, 127x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'days', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 4 words.
Onkelos
And if a man actually lies with her, and her separation comes upon him, he shall be impure for seven days, and every bed upon which he lies shall be impure.
Rashi
ותהי נדתה עליו [AND IF ANY MAN LIE WITH HER AT ALL] THEN SHALL HER UNCLEANLINESS OF SEPARATION BE UPON HIM — One might think that he follows in her wake — that if he had intercourse with her e. g. on the fifth day of her separation he shall become unclean for three days only (for the fifth, sixth and seventh) like herself (i. e. because these are the remaining days during which she is unclean)! Scripture, however, states: "he shall be unclean seven days”. Therefore these words cannot refer to the duration of her uncleanness. What then is the force of ותהי נדתה עליו? They mean: her state of uncleanness as a נדה shall be upon him. How is it in the case of her? She, being an אב הטומאה, makes man unclean, and also earthen vessels by means of היסט! So, too, he becomes an אב הטומאה (not a ולד הטומאה), and makes man unclean, and also earthen vessels by means of היסט! (Niddah 33a)
Ibn Ezra
"And if a man lies with her" — not deliberately, but rather he lay with her unknowingly and her niddah flow then came upon her while she was with him; this is the meaning of "upon him," for one who lies with a niddah intentionally is subject to karet. The same law applies to the zavah even though it is not written explicitly. "And every bed upon which he lies shall be impure" — because he himself is impure for seven days and also imparts impurity to others, even though this is not written out [in full].
Chizkuni
ישכב איש אותה, “a man will lie with her;” this excludes a woman suffering from the skin disease tzoraat; she does not confer her specific impurity to her partner, as the word אותה, implies a limitation, i.e. “only her, someone in her state.” (Chafetz Chayim)
Rashbam
אשר ישכב עליו יטמא. This degree of ritual contamination is sufficient to confer further contamination on food and drink coming into contact with it. The severity of contamination of someone lying on top of a menstruating woman is equivalent to that of someone below a male afflicted with the disease of being zav. This is spelled out in Niddah 32.
And if a woman have an issue of her blood many days not in the time of her impurity, or if she have an issue beyond the time of her impurity; all the days of the issue of her uncleanness she shall be as in the days of her impurity: she is unclean.
verse value 4362
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 79 letters. The shortest word is "or" (א֥וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "when·it·flows" (כִּֽי־יָזוּב֩, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 55: when·it·flows, impure. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "when·it·flows" (כִּֽי־יָזוּב֩), "her·blood" (דָּמָ֜הּ), "many" (רַבִּ֗ים). The root זוב appears 4 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not·at" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "she·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root רב ("many") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'upon·her·separation', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 8 words.
Onkelos
And a woman whose discharge of blood flows for many days outside the time of her separation, or who has a discharge beyond her separation — all the days of the flow of her impurity she shall be impure as during the days of her separation.
Rashi
ימים רבים [AND IF A WOMAN HAVE AN ISSUE OF HER BLOOD] MANY DAYS — at least three days (since the plural ימים suggests at least two days, the word רבים, “more", must imply at least three days) (cf. Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Section 5 9), בלא עת נדתה OUT OF THE TIME OF HER SEPARATION — i. e. at least three days immediately after the seven normal days of her separation have expired. או כי תזוב OR IF SHE HAS A FLOW during these (the above mentioned) three days, על נדתה BEYOND THE TIME OF HER SEPARATION — i. e. being remote (distant) from her time of separation by one intervening day — this woman (such a woman) is, in both cases, termed a זבה and the law regarding her is decreed in this section that follows; and it is not like the law of a נדה, because she (the former) requires the counting of seven clean days (i. e. her uncleanness does not end until she has counted שבעה נקיים, seven consecutive days that are clean of any flux; cf. v. 28) and a sacrifice on the following day (cf. v. 29); whilst the נדה does not require the counting of the clean days (i. e. התורה מן nor does she require a sacrifice) but she remains seven days in her separation and no longer irrespective as to whether she has or has not seen a show of blood (i. e. even if there is a flow on the seventh day and it then ceases she is still clean on the eighth day after having immersed herself). And they (our Rabbis) in expounding this section in the Sifra explain. There are eleven days intervening between the end of one ,נדה-period and the beginning of the next נדה-period, so that if she sees blood on three immersed herself. And they (our Rabbis) in expounding this section (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 8 2-3) derived the Halacha of the eleven days that intervene between the expiration of one נדה period and the commencement of another נדה period — i. e. that as a result of any three consecutive days that she sees blood within these eleven days she shall be (come under the law of) a זבה and not a נדה.
Ibn Ezra
"Many days not at the time of her niddah" — every woman has fixed times [for her period], or it may happen that a discharge comes upon her in addition to her niddah.
Chizkuni
ואשה כי יזוב זוב, “if a woman have an emission of her blood for many days, (not connected to her menstrual cycle);” this includes when such a flow was the result of some accident, a power completely beyond her control. דמה, “her blood;” not the blood related to any pregnancy or fetus. ימים רבים, “many days;” an unusual expression as in halachah as few as three days are considered as the minimum for the expression: “many days.” Seeing that this woman had to be physically separated from her husband such a separation is already considered as psychologically painful as if it had been “many” days, literally.(Tanchuma on this portion, section 6). על נדתה, as if the Torah had written: עם נדתה, “with her state of menstrual impurity.” Another example of the use of the word על in the sense of עם, is found in Leviticus 25, 31: על שדה הארץ יחשב, “it is considered as belonging with the field of the land.”
Rabbeinu Bahya
ימים רבים, “many days.” Our sages (Sifra Zavim section 5, items 8-9) define the word רבים here as “three.” They reason as follows: had the Torah spoken only of ימים, “days,” I would have assumed that what is meant is two days. Why would I have concluded that the word ימים refers to only two and not many? Rabbi Akiva said that whenever a word lends itself to two possible interpretations, one involving more than the other, I choose the minimum meaning compatible with that word; in this instance the minimum of ימים is “two.” Rabbi Nechemyah said: Does then the text of the Torah mean to confuse us? Surely it is meant to enlighten us! If you were to say that the word ימים without the addition רבים could have meant either ten, a hundred, or two hundred, etc., the choices would be unlimited and confusing. Therefore by understanding the word ימים as meaning the minimum, i.e. “two,” the Torah opened the way for us to understand its meaning. Rabbi Mona said: the word ימים without further detail means “two.” In the event I would have thought that it means many days this would be superfluous as the Torah already wrote the word רבים, “many.” This indicates that the total number of days the Torah had in mind were relatively few. Seeing that such a minimum of a few days is two, it stands to reason that the word רבים increases this number by a further minimum, i.e. one day more, i.e. a total of three days. A Midrashic approach (Tanchuma Metzora 6): Seeing that the woman who is a Niddah has to observe at least seven days in that state how can three days be considered “many,” seeing seven days is much more than three days? Furthermore, we find in Kings I 18,1 that the prophet Jeremiah speaks of: “it was during these many years when G’d spoke to Elijah in the third year saying to him: ‘show yourself to Achav and I will bring on rain.’” The fact is that this did not take place after three years but it was only a single month after the first year full year of the drought had been completed! The drought began at the beginning of the last month of the year during which Elijah had proclaimed it; it lasted the entire second year, i.e. at the end of the second year no rain had fallen for 13 months. [When G’d told Elijah to reveal himself to Achav, one month had passed of the third year, so that altogether the famine had been in effect for only 14 months. Ed.] Seeing that the period under discussion was one in which hardship and discomfort was experienced, even a relatively short period was described as “many years;” the same is true here. Seeing that the period during which the woman remains relatively isolated and suffers indisposition is an unpleasant period for her, the Torah describes even three days of such a period as ’many days.’
Rashbam
בלא עת נדתה, after the days of her menstruation have passed, as explained in Niddah 73 A woman is not described as being a zavah so that she would have to bring an offering after being healed unless the seven days during which she was a menstruant or expected to be a menstruant have passed. If after that period during the next 11 days she sees the symptoms of a zavah for three consecutive days she will require to count seven consecutive days during which she is free of these symptoms in order to be able to become ritually pure again. On the eighth day she is ready to offer her two bird offerings, one as a sin offering the other as a burnt offering.
Daat Zkenim
זוב דמה,ואשה כי יזוב, “and if a woman have an issue of her blood, etc.” what is described here is what Solomon in Kohelet 10,18 alluded to when he said: בעצלתים ימך המקרה, “through slothfulness the ceiling sags, and through idleness of the hands, the house leaks.” The symbolism contained in this verse refers to the neglect by a woman in observing the laws of ritual purity, especially those laws involving menstruation. If the woman fails to examine herself before the onset of her menses this can have dire consequences, both for herself and the husband with whom she entertains marital relations. In the Talmud tractate Shabbat second chapter, death in childbirth by a woman is mentioned as one of these consequences. If she handled certain hallowed foods while in a state of ritual impurity, she made these foods unfit for consumption and conferred ritual impurity on the party handling them without even having eaten them. An interesting story on this subject is related in the Talmud, tractate, Niddah, folio 6. The famous Rabbi Gamliel had a servant woman working for him, who would regularly be required to seal caskets of wine [of a highly consecrated level, Ed.] and move them to another. After each single time she had moved them, she examined herself about whether her menses had begun, as otherwise the whole casket and its contents would have been unfit for further use. This servant maid found that after she had moved the last casket she had started her period. Upon telling this to her master, she was told that if she had not been in the habit of checking herself after each time she moved a casket, not only the last one but all of them would have become ritually contaminated. This is also why on folio 13 of the same tractate, we have a statement to the effect that anyone who makes a point of frequently checking herself out in this respect is especially praiseworthy.
Every bed on which she lies all the days of her issue shall be to her as the bed of her impurity; and every thing on which she sits shall be unclean, as the uncleanness of her impurity.
verse value 5241
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 75 letters. The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "any·bedding" (כׇּל־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֞ב, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 459: her·menstruation, her·menstruation. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "which·she·shall·lie·down" (אֲשֶׁר־תִּשְׁכַּ֤ב), "her·discharge" (זוֹבָ֔הּ), "as·bedding·of" (כְּמִשְׁכַּ֥ב). The root משכב appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be·to·her" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'it·shall·be·to·her', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 8 words.
Onkelos
Every bed upon which she lies during all the days of her discharge shall be to her as the bed of her separation, and every vessel upon which she sits shall be impure as the impurity of her separation.
And whoever touches those things shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
verse value 1208
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 41 letters. The shortest word is "in·them" (בָּ֖ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·all·who·touches" (וְכׇל־הַנּוֹגֵ֥עַ, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·all·who·touches" (וְכׇל־הַנּוֹגֵ֥עַ). The root טמא appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "he·shall·be·impure" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "and·all·who·touches" (root נגע, 85x in Leviticus); "his·clothes" (root בגד, 52x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'he·shall·be·impure', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְכׇל־הַנּוֹגֵ֥עַ [and·all·who·touches] (190) + בָּ֖ם [in·them] (42) + יִטְמָ֑א [he·shall·be·impure] (60) + וְכִבֶּ֧ס [and·he·shall·wash] (88) + בְּגָדָ֛יו [his·clothes] (25) + וְרָחַ֥ץ [and·he·shall·wash] (304) + בַּמַּ֖יִם [in·the·waters] (92) + וְטָמֵ֥א [and·he·shall·be·impure] (56) + עַד־הָעָֽרֶב [until·the·evening] (351) = 1208.
Onkelos
And whoever touches them shall be impure, and he shall launder his garments and bathe in water, and shall be impure until evening.
Chizkuni
וכל הנוגע בם, “and anyone touching them;” even if touching them only indirectly, as for instance by holding on to the same rope.
Targum Yonatan
And whoever toucheth those (things) shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes, and bathe in forty seahs of water, and be unclean until the evening.
But if she be cleansed of her issue, then she shall number to herself seven days, and after that she shall be clean.
verse value 2413
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 35 letters. The shortest word is "to·her" (לָּ֛הּ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·if·she·shall·be·pure" (וְאִֽם־טָהֲרָ֖ה, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·if·she·shall·be·pure" (וְאִֽם־טָהֲרָ֖ה), "from·her·discharge" (מִזּוֹבָ֑הּ), "and·she·shall·count" (וְסָ֥פְרָה). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "days" (root יום, 112x in Leviticus); "seven" (root שבע, 54x in Leviticus); "she·shall·be·pure" (root טהר, 44x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root לה ("to·her") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·her·discharge', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְאִֽם־טָהֲרָ֖ה [and·if·she·shall·be·pure] (266) + מִזּוֹבָ֑הּ [from·her·discharge] (60) + וְסָ֥פְרָה [and·she·shall·count] (351) + לָּ֛הּ [to·her] (35) + שִׁבְעַ֥ת [seven] (772) + יָמִ֖ים [days] (100) + וְאַחַ֥ר [and·after] (215) + תִּטְהָֽר [she·shall·be·pure] (614) = 2413.
Onkelos
And if she is cleansed of her discharge, she shall count for herself seven days, and afterward she shall be pure.
Or HaChaim
ואם טהרה מזובה וספרה, But if she be cleansed from her issue, then she shall number, etc. We have to try to understand the use of the past tense for the word וספרה instead of the future tense, i.e. ותספור. Precisely when is the count to commence? If the count is to commence immediately, why does the Torah not write ותספור? If it is to occur only after she has become purified, the words "afterwards she shall be clean" do not make sense. We may have to explain this in light of what Torat Kohanim wrote on the meaning of the words טהרה מזובה. They interpret it as a cessation of the issue. The Torah tells us how we are to know that she may be considered cleansed from her issue, i.e. from the time the flow of blood stops. Her "purity" is then sufficient to permit her to begin the count of seven days (during which the flow must not recur). Rashi concurs with this interpretation in Megillah 8. He writes that she may begin counting without first having to immerse herself in a ritual bath. There is another way of interpreting our verse. The words ואם טהרה, "if she is cleansed," mean that the flow of blood has stopped; after all, this is the plain meaning of "she is clean from her flow of blood." You should not think, however, that the impurity has departed from her; the only thing which has departed from her is the contaminating issue. This is why the Torah underlined this by the extraneous word מזובה, "from her issue." What has not departed is the impurity transmitted to people touching the afflicted person. She is still ritually impure and has to count seven days during which she must be free of renewed symptoms. This is why the wording וספרה, a past tense converted by the use of the וו ההיפוך, the letter ו which reverses the tenses is in order.
Chizkuni
וספרה לה, “then she shall count for herself, etc.” she does not recite a blessing over her counting such as we do when we count the omer as she cannot be sure that she will complete the count, for instance if the bleeding recurs before seven days of counting have elapsed. She would then have uttered the name of the Lord in vain, a major sin.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ואם טהרה מזובה, “when she becomes purified from her discharge, etc.;” when a woman with such a discharge begins the process of healing and purification she has to count seven days just as has the male who had experienced the discharge from his sexual organ. After the seven days have elapsed she is potentially pure, just as the male is potentially pure after the seven day count. This would have led us to believe that just as the male who had a similar discharge had to immerse himself in מים חיים, water directly from a spring, the woman would have to do the same. Seeing that the words “and after that she will be purified” are unnecessary, the sages decided that the woman though not requiring מים חיים, spring water to complete her purification rites, does require immersion in the regular ritual bath וספרה לה שבעת ימים, ”she has to count seven days for herself.” She does not have to recite a benediction prior to counting such as is the case when counting the Omer. The reason is that generally speaking, the benediction is recited immediately before the commandment is performed. In this instance, assuming that the woman in question were to see blood during the days she was counting, the days prior to that count would be retroactively annulled; as a result her benediction would amount to uttering the Lord’s name in vain. Due to such a consideration she is not allowed to recite the benediction over her count. The reason why woman has been assigned the commandment to perform this count and the related procedures is best understood by the words of the Midrash in Bereshit Rabbah 13,17 that woman “spilled the blood of man,” i.e. caused his mortality. In return for this her own blood is to be spilled. This is also why the commandments to set aside challah and to light the Sabbath candles have been assigned to woman to give her an opportunity to rehabilitate the calamity original woman had caused. Adam was considered the challah of mankind, of the universe, as it were. Seeing that through her deed she extinguished the “light” of the universe on the original Sabbath eve, she was given the task to rehabilitate her species through the lighting of the Sabbath candles every Sabbath eve.
Daat Zkenim
ואחר תטהר, “and after that she is ritually clean.” Immersion of her whole body in forty measures of water in the ritual basin are what made her clean. Our sages in the Talmud tractate Eyruvin, folio 75 derive this from the words: אך במי נדה יתחטא, “but in the waters in which a menstruating woman bathes it will be cleansed.” [after waiting for the appropriate number of days without bleeding, Ed.] (Numbers 31,23). In verses 16-17 in our chapter, these steps to obtain ritual cleanliness are spelled out. Midrash Rabbah on Isaiah 8,6, describing the slow moving river Shiloah as moving לאט, points out that the numerical value of that word is 40; hence 40 saah of rainwater or well water is the minimum required for a ritual bath this has become the minimum amount stipulated by our sages as adequate for submersion.
And on the eighth day she shall take to her two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, and bring them to the priest, to the door of the tent of meeting.
verse value 4144 — אֹ֥הֶל = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 63 letters. Notable word values: "tent·of" (אֹ֥הֶל) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "or" (א֥וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·eighth" (הַשְּׁמִינִ֗י, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "she·shall·take·to·her" (תִּֽקַּֽח־לָהּ֙). The root שנים appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·the·priest" (root כהן, 195x in Leviticus); "sons·of" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus); "and·in·the·day" (root יום, 112x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'pigeon', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 6 words.
Onkelos
And on the eighth day she shall take for herself two turtledoves or two young pigeons, and she shall bring them to the priest, to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting.
Ibn Ezra
"Ve-hevi'ah otam" — accented on the last syllable (mil-ra), and it is a rare form.
Chizkuni
והביאה אותם אל הכהן, “and she will bring them (the two birds) to the priest;” whence do I know that this woman is permitted to immerse herself in a ritual bath before the evening, even? The clue are the words: ”to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting;” how could she have done this on this day if she had not first immersed herself in a ritual bath? She would still have been ritually impure? Having immersed herself in a ritual bath before sunset enabled her to bring the birds to the priest still on the same day. (Sifra)
And the priest shall offer the one for a sin-offering, and the other for a burnt-offering; and the priest shall make atonement for her before Hashem for the issue of her uncleanness.
verse value 3035 — יְהֹוָ֔ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 57 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֔ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "burnt-offering" (עֹלָ֑ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·the·one" (וְאֶת־הָאֶחָ֖ד, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 80: the·priest, the·priest. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "from·the·discharge·of" (מִזּ֖וֹב). The root כהן appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "the·priest" (root כהן, 195x in Leviticus); "for·her" (root על, 127x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'burnt-offering', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְעָשָׂ֤ה [and·he·shall·make] (381) + הַכֹּהֵן֙ [the·priest] (80) + אֶת־הָאֶחָ֣ד [the·one] (419) + חַטָּ֔את [sin-offering] (418) + וְאֶת־הָאֶחָ֖ד [and·the·one] (425) + עֹלָ֑ה [burnt-offering] (105) + וְכִפֶּ֨ר [and·he·shall·atone] (306) + עָלֶ֤יהָ [for·her] (115) + הַכֹּהֵן֙ [the·priest] (80) + לִפְנֵ֣י [to·face·of] (170) + יְהֹוָ֔ה [Hashem] (26) + מִזּ֖וֹב [from·the·discharge·of] (55) + טֻמְאָתָֽהּ [her·impurity] (455) = 3035.
Onkelos
And the priest shall prepare the one as a sin offering and the one as a burnt offering, and the priest shall make atonement for her before Hashem on account of the flow of her impurity.
Thus shall you separate the children of Israel from their uncleanness; that they die not in their uncleanness, when they defile My tabernacle that is in the midst of them.
verse value 5059
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 55 letters. The shortest word is "and·not" (וְלֹ֤א, 3 letters) and the longest is "sons·of·Israel" (אֶת־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל, 10 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·you·shall·set·apart" (וְהִזַּרְתֶּ֥ם), "sons·of·Israel" (אֶת־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל), "from·their·impurity" (מִטֻּמְאָתָ֑ם). The root טמאה appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "and·not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "sons·of·Israel" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·their·impurity', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְהִזַּרְתֶּ֥ם [and·you·shall·set·apart] (658) + אֶת־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [sons·of·Israel] (1004) + מִטֻּמְאָתָ֑ם [from·their·impurity] (530) + וְלֹ֤א [and·not] (37) + יָמֻ֙תוּ֙ [they·shall·die] (456) + בְּטֻמְאָתָ֔ם [in·their·impurity] (492) + בְּטַמְּאָ֥ם [by·their·defiling] (92) + אֶת־מִשְׁכָּנִ֖י [my·Tabernacle] (821) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [that] (501) + בְּתוֹכָֽם [in·their·midst] (468) = 5059.
Onkelos
And you shall separate the children of Israel from their impurities, so that they do not die through their impurities by defiling My Tabernacle that is among them.
Rashi
והזרתם THUS SHALL YE PUT APART [THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL] — The word נזר has wherever it occurs the meaning of "separating". Similar is (Isaiah 1:4) “they are gone away (נזורו) backward" ; (Genesis 49:26) “him that was separated from (נזיר) his brethren” (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 9 6). ולא ימתו בטמאתם THAT THEY DIE NOT IN THEIR UNCLEANNESS [WHEN THEY DEFILE MY TABERNACLE] — Thus you see that the penalty of “excision” to which one who defiles the Holy Place is subject (cf. Numbers 19:13) is here called מיתה (i. e. מיתה בידי שמים) (cf. Sifrei Bamidbar 125).
Ibn Ezra
"Ve-hizartem" — some commentators explain this as ve-hizartem with a missing he, but this is untenable, because the he is not one of the letters that can be drawn out [i.e., it is not a quiescent letter], for a quiescent letter can only be at the end of a word. Rather, the meaning is like "they shall abstain from the sacred things of the children of Israel" (ve-yinazru mi-kodshei benei Yisrael) — in the sense of separation and distancing — and from it [derives the word] nazir, one who has separated himself from the desires of the world. Its grammatical pattern is like "and you shall apportion the land" (ve-hippaltem et ha-aretz), where the nun is absorbed into the dagesh. "In their impurity" (be-tum'atam) — on account of their impurity; and its meaning is: in their defiling My Tabernacle.
Chizkuni
והזהרתם, “you shall issue the warning to the Children of Israel;” these words are the warning not to violate the law; ולא ימותו, “so that they will not die (on account of the sin)” these words are the announcement of the potential penalty for violation. בטומאתם, “on account of their ritual contamination;” (IbnEzra)
Rabbeinu Bahya
והזרתם את בני ישראל מטומאתם, “you shall separate the Children of Israel from their ritual impurities.” These additional words are the source for our sages having instructed husbands to separate from their wives when these are about to menstruate (Shevuot 18). As to the length of time a husband has to separate from his wife, Ravina said a 12-hour period. The Talmud Niddah 63 elaborates that if a woman was in the habit of seeing menstrual blood each month at midday, her husband has to stay away from her on that entire day, but he may cohabit with her on the preceding night. If she usually experiences this phenomenon in the second hour after daybreak, she is also still permitted to her husband on the preceding night. If, on the other hand, she usually notices such blood as beginning to flow during the night, even near daybreak, she is out of bounds for intercourse with her husband the entire night before that. However, she is permitted to her husband during the entire daylight period preceding that night. Even if she normally experiences a blood flow during the second hour of the night, her husband may still disregard her approaching menstruation until sunset before the night in question. According to theTalmud in Shevuot which we quoted, when a husband disregards these admonitions of the sages, his children (if not of age) even if of the excellence of the sons of Aaron, may be liable to die as a punishment for his lack of restraint. The sages derive all this from the admonition in our verse to separate themselves from contact with their contamination. Immediately after this paragraph the Torah reports (a second time) that the two older sons of Aaron had died. This may be taken as a warning. The sages have actually been warned by our verse to warn the people of the possible consequences of disregard of the instructions in this verse.
This is the law of him who has an issue, and of him from whom the flow of seed goes out, so that he is unclean thereby;
verse value 3653
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 35 letters. Verse gematria: 3653 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "this" (זֹ֥את, 3 letters) and the longest is "emission·of·seed" (שִׁכְבַת־זֶ֖רַע, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "it·shall·go·out" (תֵּצֵ֥א). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·who" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "to·become·impure·by·it" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "from·him" (root מן, 41x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·one·with·discharge', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 5 words. Full calculation: זֹ֥את [this] (408) + תּוֹרַ֖ת [instruction·of] (1006) + הַזָּ֑ב [the·one·with·discharge] (14) + וַאֲשֶׁ֨ר [and·who] (507) + תֵּצֵ֥א [it·shall·go·out] (491) + מִמֶּ֛נּוּ [from·him] (136) + שִׁכְבַת־זֶ֖רַע [emission·of·seed] (999) + לְטׇמְאָה־בָֽהּ [to·become·impure·by·it] (92) = 3653.
Onkelos
This is the law of the one with the discharge, and of one from whom an emission of semen issues, so as to become impure through it;
Rashi
זאת תורת הזב THIS IS THE LAW OF HIM THAT HATH AN ISSUE, i.e. anyone who has but one appearance of flux. And what is his law? ואשר תצא ממנו שכבת זרע, he is like him to whom a pollution happened: he is unclean with an uncleanness lasting only till the evening (Sifra, Metzora Parashat Zavim, Chapter 9 8; cf. v. 16).
Ibn Ezra
"To make impure thereby" — [meaning] it is a commandment that an impure person remain [apart]; I will explain this further.
Sforno
זאת תורת הזב, the following considerations dealing with our subject need to be kept in mind: 1) seeing that the male afflicted with the discharge in question is required to bring a sin offering at the termination of the healing process teaches that the affliction was due to sin both in deed and in thought. 2) ואשר תצא ממנו שכבת זרע לטמאה בה the fact that ejaculation of seminal fluid by a man results in his becoming ritually impure is due to the contamination of man the species by the original serpent, for ever since the original sin seminal ejaculation has been used for physical gratification also, not only for the function allocated to it by G’d, propagation of the species. Had it not been for the serpent’s seduction of Eve, nothing spiritually negative would have become part of the act of ejaculating seminal fluids.
and of her that is sick with her impurity, and of them that have an issue, whether it be a man, or a woman; and of him that lies with her that is unclean.
verse value 2724 — וְהַדָּוָה֙ = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 48 letters. Notable word values: "and·the·unwell·woman" (וְהַדָּוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "who" (אֲשֶׁ֥ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "his·discharge" (אֶת־זוֹב֔וֹ, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·the·unwell·woman" (וְהַדָּוָה֙), "and·the·one·with·discharge" (וְהַזָּב֙), "and·to·man" (וּלְאִ֕ישׁ). The root זוב appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "who" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "with·an·impure·woman" (root טמא, 131x in Leviticus); "and·to·man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·to·the·female', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְהַדָּוָה֙ [and·the·unwell·woman] (26) + בְּנִדָּתָ֔הּ [in·her·menstruation] (461) + וְהַזָּב֙ [and·the·one·with·discharge] (20) + אֶת־זוֹב֔וֹ [his·discharge] (422) + לַזָּכָ֖ר [to·the·male] (257) + וְלַנְּקֵבָ֑ה [and·to·the·female] (193) + וּלְאִ֕ישׁ [and·to·man] (347) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [who] (501) + יִשְׁכַּ֖ב [he·shall·lie] (332) + עִם־טְמֵאָֽה [with·an·impure·woman] (165) = 2724.
Onkelos
and of one who has the impurity of her separation, and of one who has a discharge — whether male or female — and of a man who lies with an impure woman.
Rashi
והזב את זובו — This refers to anyone who has two appearances and to anyone who has three appearances, the law regarding whom is set forth above (cf. Rashi on v. 3).
Ibn Ezra
"And the meaning of 'the male'" — its explanation is: this is the law of the zav. "And the meaning of 'with an impure one'" — [meaning] a zavah or a niddah.
Sforno
והדוה בנדתה, the word דוה alludes to something sinful, hence she became ritually defiled. והזב, the thoughts we must entertain when studying this subject is that we must reflect on the original sin. את זובו לזכר ולנקבה, at this point we must consider the difference between the legislation governing a man’s involuntary seminal-like ejaculation, and that of a woman. A woman’s discharge confers impurity only if it is reddish, whereas the parallel discharge by a male confers impurity only if it is not reddish. ולאיש אשר ישכב עם טמאה, here we also have to reflect on the subject of a man deliberately indulging in sexual intercourse with a ritually contaminated woman. The Torah had written (verse 24) ותהי נדתה עליו, “her state of menstrual separation will apply to him.” There is no parallel verse describing such a result as due to a ritually pure woman sleeping with a man who was a zav at the time. [the ritual impurity of the zav was induced by a diseased body, as opposed to menstruation which is a natural state ever since the original sin. Ed.] There appears to be a dichotomy there. The Torah teaches that when a man is violating sexual mores he causes more spiritually negative fallout to himself than when a woman does the same thing in reverse. At least, there appears to be a difference between sickness induced by individual sin, such as zav and zavah as well as in the case of tzoraat, which we explained as also a sickness due to individual sin, not to the spiritual state of man, the species, since the original sin. This is why voluntary carnal association with the menstruant woman is a greater sin than voluntary carnal association with zav or zavah.
Chizkuni
עם טמאה, “with a ritually impure woman, be she afflicted with emissions of blood at unusual times, or while she counts the days before purification.
Rabbeinu Bahya
והדוה בנדתה, “concerning a woman experiencing this flow, etc.” The sequence in which the Torah has arranged all the paragraphs describing these sources of impurity originating in our bodies is this: the Torah first listed the male who experiences an involuntary discharge of something similar to seminal fluid (verse 2); next the Torah writes about the result of cohabitation between man and woman (verse 18) resulting in contamination, seeing that also the first example (verse 16) of man having a nocturnal emission had resulted in such contamination. As a result, the Torah here can write: “this is the legislation concerning the male who experiences a discharge” (verse 32). This is followed by the woman who experiences a vaginal discharge at times other than her menstrual cycle, followed by the woman who experiences her regular menstrual cycle (verse 33). At the very conclusion of our portion the Torah speaks about someone who defies this legislation by cohabiting with a woman while she is contaminated through vaginal discharge of either kind. If the Torah had remained true to the sequence followed earlier, the words ולאיש אשר ישכב עם טמאה, “and concerning the man who cohabits with a woman who is in a state of contamination,” should have been written before the words לזכר ולנקבה which would have made a more appropriate ending for this portion. I believe the reason that the Torah changed the sequence of the words here was in order to conclude with the words עם טמאה, “with a contaminated woman,” in order to establish the conceptual linkage with the death of the sons of Aaron at the beginning of the next portion. The message is that the Israelites must be warned that unless they observe the laws legislated in our portion including separating themselves from their wives in anticipation of the menstrual cycle setting in, their children would be at risk. Tanchuma Acharey 6 quotes an opinion that the sons of Aaron died as they entered the Sanctuary in a state of ritual impurity not having purified themselves first. If that opinion is correct, the fact that our portion concludes with the words טמאה provides a conceptual link to the recapping of the death of the sons of Aaron in the following verse, the first in Parshat Acharey Mot. [Our author uses this verse to list all the various deficiencies the sons of Aaron have been accused of by the sages of the Midrash. Seeing this has been discussed at length in Leviticus 10,1, I have not repeated this here. Ed.] A Midrashic approach to our verse based on Tanchuma Metzora 9: when the Torah writes והדוה בנדתה, this is a reference to the Jewish people whose contamination is comparable to that of a menstruous woman. Such a woman while conferring ritual impurity on others is nonetheless slated to become purified again. Similarly, Israel, though in a state in which it disseminates impurity is liable to become purified again as we know from Ezekiel 36,17 “their way used to be before Me like that of the contaminated state of the menstruous woman.” Significantly, the prophet does not compare the impurity and contamination of the Jewish people as like the impurity and contamination of a dead body which is so severe that a priest may not even enter the house in which a body is lying, but describes it as a far lesser degree of contamination. Had the prophet compared the impurity of the Jewish people to that of a dead body no hope would have been held out for the eventual return of the Shechinah to the people. However, seeing their degree of impurity is compared to that of a נדה, this means that just as a priest may enter the house of such a woman and sit on the porch, so G’d may spread the wings of His Shechinah over the Jewish people even before they have become purified from their state of contamination, i.e. even while they are still in exile among the pagans. We have a specific verse confirming this in Leviticus 16,16 השוכן אתם בתוך טומאתם, “Who dwells with them amidst their contamination.” In that verse G’d is saying that “you are contaminated only in this world; in the world to come. I will purify you once and for all;” we know this from Ezekiel 36,25: “I will sprinkle upon you pure water and cleanse you from all your contaminations and from all your filth I will purify you.”
Onkelos
Ibn Ezra